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THE GREAT 

ROOSEVELT 

AFRICAN HUNT 

AND 

THE WILD ANIMALS OF AFRICA 

Their appearance, habits, traits of character, and every 
detail of their wild life; with 

Thrilling, Exciting, Daring and Dangerous 

Exploits of 

Hunters of Big Game 
in Wildest Africa 

By 
Prof. AXEL LUNDEBERG and FREDERICK SEYMOUR 

Noted Author and Traveler. Renowned Hunter and Naturalist. 

RICHLfy ILLUSTRATED 



With over 200 Half-Tone Engravings 

Made especially for this volume, many of them from photographs 
of wild animals taken in their native African homes. 









y 



Copyright 

1910 

By D. B. McCurdy 



The halftone engravings from Photographs or drawings in this book, not specially 
copyrighted by others, are protected by the above copyright notice by D. B. McCurdy. 



ALL RICHTS RESERVED. 



CCI.A361905 



AUTHOR'S PREFACE. 



9 The American hunting expedition to the wilds of British East Africa, 
described on the following pages, is one of the most remarkable undertakings 
of the Twentieth Century. Never before was an attempt made on so large 
a scale to explore the wilderness of Africa and secure first-class specimens 
of its wonderful animal world, now fast disappearing before the advancing 
steps oi European civilization. Add to this the unusual and extraordinary 
attention this famous enterprise has aroused in the whole civilized world, 
owing- to the fact that at its head stands America's national hero and one of 
the greatest hunters, sportsmen and naturalists of our time — Theodore Roose- 
velt — and my readers will admit that a more fascinating and entertaining 
book than the story of the great Roosevelt African hunt has never been within 
their reach. 

I have spent many years of my life traveling in foreign countries and 
thereby became intimately acquainted with animal life in almost every part 
of our globe. It is my firm conviction that no study is more ennobling and 
elevating than that of God's animal kingdom. And I hold that next to visiting 
foreign countries and observing their fauna with one's own eyes, nothing 
can be more instructive and apt to 1 enlarge the horizon of our minds than the 
study of books of travel and natural history. And especially is this true when 
the author's descriptions are illustrated by faithful photographic reproduc- 
tions of the objects he has seen. And the publishers of this work have been 
fortunate enough in securing original and first-hand photographs of all animals 
here described. The reader thereby is introduced to' the lion, the hippopotamus, 
the rhinoceros, the elephant, and all the rest of the inhabitants of the African 
velt or jungle just as they actually appeared to' Colonel Roosevelt and the 
other members of the American expedition. He meets with the living reality. 
Africa's wonderful animal world is brought right to his library or sitting- 
room. This book, therefore, is a standard work of great merit. My descrip- 
tions of the animals are founded partly on my own extensive experience, 



VI 



AUTHOR'S PREFACE. 



partly on first-hand information received from well-known naturalists. All 
sensational features are excluded. Nothing but fully authenticated facts is told. 
It has been the author's ambition and effort to produce a work on the 
unfortunately soon extinct wonderful animal world of Africa that would, so 
to say, perpetuate this vanishing feature of our globe in word and picture. 
May this magnificent African panorama become a welcome guest in every 
American home, and may it furnish our growing generation with an invig- 
orating and wholesome spiritual nourishment and be an incitement to brave 
and noble deeds and love of nature both in young and old. 

AXEL LUNDEBERG. 





TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 

Wily He Went to Africa. Hunting big game as a young man — His first book, "Hunt- 
ing Trips of a Ranchman" — Universally known as hunter among sportsmen of 
the world — White House interviews with hunters of big game — Decision for 
African trip made two years before close of presidential term 

Voyage to Mombasa. Members of hunting party- — Incidents of the voyage — Stops at 
Naples and Messina — Meets King Victor Emmanuel — Arrival and enthusiastic 
reception at Mombasa 

Hunting Preparations and Outfit. Hunter's license — Refuses special privileges — Em- 
ploying native helpers — Wages paid, supplies furnished, fresh meat required daily 

Bravest Native Hunters of Africa. Command highest pay — No fear of death — Great 
fidelity to employers when, peril threatens — Terrible fight with wounded lion.... 

The True African Sportsman. Hazard of limb and life — Violent charges of lion, buf- 
falo, elephant and rhinoceros — Hunter's intense scorn for cowardice 

Scope of the Roosevelt Hunting Grounds. Embraces every variety of country — plain, 
jungle, swamp, forest, and hill — Swarms with game — Over fifty varieties, not 
excelled anywhere in the world — The hunter 's paradise — Magnificent ranches 
and private hunting grounds 

Awful Cost of the Uganda Railroad. Great cost in money, and greater cost in human 
lives — Awful toll collected by disease, poisonous insects, reptiles, carnivorous 
beasts, warlike natives, the tsetse fly that causes the fatal sleeping sickness, and 
the man-eating lion 

Special Object of the Expedition. Aim to collect natural history specimens for 
Smithsonian .Institution 

Roosevelt's Guns and Ammunition. Preparations for bagging big and small game. 

Off on the Roosevelt Safari. The busy two days spent at Mombasa prior to de- 
parture for the hunting grounds 

MOMBASA TO NAIROBI. 

Old Mombasa, or the Battle City. Picturesque jungle of old and new Africa — Its his- 
tory — Captured and recaptured alternately by Portuguese and Arabs until pro- 
tected by Great Britain " 

New Mombasa, the British Capital. Net-work of tramways — Coolies and aristocratic 
Europeans — Hearty welcome for visitors — Harbor at Kilindini, two miles southeast 

Climbing the Desert of Taru to Voi. The Uganda railroad — Nairobi — Large depots and 
docks at Kilindini — Great Iron Bridge — Cocoanut palms and mangroves, well kept 
plantations, and native huts 

vii 



viii TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

Taru Desert and Old Caravan Route. Old road viewed from Roosevelt's speeding 
train — A desert, but not destitute of animal life 

Glorious Mount Kilimanjaro. Highest peak in Africa, 19,2D0 above sea — Government 
road — Bungalow for tourists — Climbing the mountain from a heat of 110°, to 
snow and glaciers at the top ; 

How the Game is Killed in Reserves. Safe from human hunters, but a slaughter pen 
for small and peaceable game by big and ferocious animals — Antelopes, zebras, 
ostriches and giraffes swarm here, but great numbers are required to satisfy the 
bloodthirsty appetites of lions, leopards, hyenas and jackals 

The Run from Voi to Kapiti Plains. Great hunt started April 22nd on Ranch of Sir 
Alfred Pease on the Athi River — Guard of honor at station — Personnel of the 
party — His camp in the Mau Hills — First lion hunt — Roosevelt's joy over his first 
killing — Kermit a good second — Animals killed by the party in this region — Ker- 
mit and his camera also effective — Off for the Juja Ranch of W. N. McMillan, 
east of Nairobi 

Country from Kapiti Plains to Nairobi. Up toward the great hunting grounds near 
headwaters of the Athi River — The spill-over of game from the reserves 

Nairobi, Chicago of East Africa. Headquarters of the Uganda Railroad — Shops, iron 
works and native workers, also military and political headquarters — Telegraph and 
telephone center — Automobiles and good hotels — Electric lights glitter in the eyes 
of wild lions and jackals — A hospitable city to African travelers 



ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 

Nairobi, the Great Outfitting Point. Hunting expeditions or caravan parties arrive 
and depart daily — Porters loaded with trophies of the chase — European and 
Hindu merchants 

Hospitable Planters of the Hunter's Paradise. Great estates — Juja farm, 20,000 acres 
— E. W. Jackson, Sir Alfred Pease, William N. McMillan royal entertainers — 
Roosevelt pleased with their kindness and help 

Beauties of the Mount Kenia Region, Eastern Limits of the Hunt. Gorgeous colors 
in blossoms, groves of wild olives — Granite spires swarming with little gray mon- 
keys — 'Safe from the wild beasts — Glorious cloud effects — A land of surprises — 
Chosen home of the rhinoceros — The shy and pretty Colobus monkey 

Tracking, Attacking and Killing the Big Game. Distinguishing the spoor, or tracks, of 
lion ; elephant, buffalo, rhino, hippo and antelope 

Tracking Big Game by Their Droppings and Browsings. These, with the story of the 
spoor, lead the hunter to his quarry — Different signs on trees and shrubbery left 
by the elephant, rhinoceros, buffalo and antelope 

Charms of the Lion Chase. Human wit against animal instinct — Usually minds his 
own business unless attacked, but most wise and uncertain of big beasts — 
Comparative advantages of riding the lion, or hunting him afoot — His whirlwind 
rush pronounced by hunters the ' ' swiftest thing on earth" 

Blind Charge of the Black Rhinoceros. Does not wait to be attacked — Tears through 
whole caravans — Almost blind, but among the first to scent "tainted air" — 
Loves to lurk in dark places 

Terrific Onslaught of the Buffalo. The hereditary foe of the lion— Knows he is favored 
meat for the king of beasts — One of the most tenacious of life among the beasts. . 

Sable Antelope. The great dog killer — Also sometimes drives his spear-like horns 
through the hunter 's body 

Hartbeests and Gnus. Their wonderful staying qualities — No horse can compare with 
them — Shot through the lungs, they still gallop out of sight— White bearded 
wildebeest — Jackson's hartbeest — Coke's hartbeest and other varieties common 
to the Roosevelt hunting grounds 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. ix 

NEW AFRICA. 

Ill Black and White. Scattering villages of Wanytka — Generally agricultural, but some- 
times dangerous — Murder of Thomas London and execution of natives 

Wakamba, Largest Tribe of East Africa. Farmers and herdsmen and only tribe to hold 
their own against the warlike Masai 

The Warlike Masai. Prowess as lion hunters — Dance in honor of a young man who 
killed a lion armed only with a spear — Gamblers, like other black men 

The Kikuyu. An unreliable tribe between Nairobi and Mount Kenia 

Naked Tribes at the Head of Victoria Nyanza. Bronze Models of physical perfection 
-^-Moral and peaceable people 

The Nandi Tribe. Stole telegraph wire for bracelets and earrings and railroad bolts 
for spear heads ' 

Native Kingdom of Uganda. A well organized state under the protection of Great 
Britain — The Japanese of Africa and their king — A land of cotton, cocoa, coffee, 
oranges, lemons, pineapples and general fertility — People eager for knowledge... 

White Belt. British, Germans, Americans and Boers — From Nairobi to Port Florence 
a region of farms and plantations — Nakuru, the chief Boer colony — Old-time foes 
peaceful farmers 

Great Scenic Section of the Uganda Railway. Bises over two thousand feet the first 
tNventy-f our miles 

Escarpment Station Overlooking Great Rift Valley, 1,500 Feet Below. A railroad 
pitching over a, cliff — Valley of volcanic hills and> craters — A country of escarp- 
ments, or abrupt land pitches — A slumbering volcano — Old rope lift for travelers 
to this weird region 

On to Kijabe, Well Named "The Wind." A bleak station — Bide of the Boosevelt 
party on the cow catcher from Kikuyu — 'Shoot Colobus monkeys near Kijabe — 
Boosevelt visits the African Inland Mission 

Lovely and Mysterious Lake Naivasha Beyond. Bright blossoms on its bosom — In 
its midst an almost submerged crater — The home of myriad of water fowl— Sur- 
rounded by big game and great herds of sheep and goats — Its islands great 
breeding grounds for herons 

Government Breeding Farm for Zebras Near Lake Naivasha. Efforts to solve the 
horse problem in Africa by producing a zebra hybrid 

Nakuru and Its Charming Lake. A rich grass country surrounding a salt lake — Along 
the Mau escarpment and over twenty-seven huge viaducts built by American 
engineers — A country of Boer farmers 

From Fort Ternan to Port Florence. Last section of Uganda Bailroad through a 
swampy but fertile country 

The Approach to Port Florence and Lake Victoria Nyanza Disappointing. Port 
Florence, a transfer station from railroad to steamer 

Big Hunting Grounds to the North. Along the Nzoia Eiver and around the southern 
base of Mount Elgon — A famous lion country — Riding down His Kingship — Herds 
of giraffe and Jackson's hartbeest — Following a lion into cover 

Across the Lake to Entebbe. British capital of the Uganda Protectorate — A carefully 
planned city — Charming location and surroundings of ' ' The Chair ' ' — Shores blaz- 
ing with color — Island gems in the blue lake 

The Sleeping Sickness. Beautiful district densely populated by natives eight years ago 
now devastated — Laboratory and hospital at Entebbe — Treatment of the disease — 
Its inoculator, the tsetse fly — Its symptoms and mortality — 'Koch's investigations 

Roosevelt's Host and Hostess at Entebbe. Judge George F. M. Ennis, head of the 
judicial system of the Uganda Protectorate, and his wife (nee Miss Ethel Kirk- 
land of Chicago) — Formal reception by Sir Hesketh Bell, the governor — Home 
entertaining by Mrs. Ennis, Entebbe's only American — Roosevelt's God-speed 
toward the Nile and civilization 



x TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

Lion Hunting in Africa. Eoosevelt meets the King of the African Forests in his na- 
tive jungle — Three lions bagged in one day — Interesting facts about the lion 103 

The Mountain Lion. The mountain lion, a savage enemy to horses and sheep — A moun- 
tain lion cries when caught with a lasso and shot 127 

The African Buffalo. The delights of the buffalo hunt as experienced by Mr. Eoosevelt 
and other sportsmen — His first encounter with this ferocious animal — The story of 
the buffalo • m 

Story of the Fossa. Largest flesh-eating animal of Madagascar — Species of the cat 
family— Its long tail and fierce disposition 145 

Hunting the Elephant. Elephant charges ex-President — His narrow escape from death — 
Dangers and excitement of the elephant hunt — The story of the elephant 148 

The Ship of the Desert. The camel not a wild animal, but African — The carrier of com- 
merce of Northern Africa — Lives for many days without food and drink — How the 
camel is loaded — A caravan in the desert 166 

The Scavenger Hyena. Kermit rides down a hyena — Habits of this carrion-eating beast — 
The scavengers of the velt and steppes 175 

The Wild Sheep. Eoosevelt hunting the big horn — A leap of one hundred and fifty feet 
down a precipice — Sheep on ' ' the roof of the world ' ' — Wild sheep playing hide and 
seek with the natives 179 

The Mungoose. Where found in Africa — An all-around fighter — Hater of snakes — Kills 
a poisonous cobra — Clears Cuba and Porto Eico of rats 185 

The Caracal, or African Lynx. A sportsman's stories about the African lynx — Tamed 
cubs — The lynx catching jack rabbit — Its valuable fur — It catches birds on the wing— 
"Lynx-eyed" 191 

Hippopotamus Hunting. Colonel Eoosevelt 's thrilling adventure and narrow escape on 
Lake Naivasha— He kills two huge hippopotami 195 

The Wild Boar. Boars often mistaken for lions — Dangerous sport for hunters — Furious 
charge on horses, elephants and camels — Fight between a wild hog and a snake .... 205 

The Porcupine. A nocturnal animal, bristling with long spines — Will not run from foe — ■ 
Eolls itself in a ball when attacked — Cannot show its quills — Savages use quills 
as Jdecorations 211 

Story of the Wapi. A strange animal discovered in Central Africa — Has the body of a 
horse, head of a giraffe and stripes like a zebra 215 

The African Jackal. The ancestor of our dog — Hunts at night — Harmless, but kills chick- 
ens, lambs, rabbits and small antelopes 219 

The Monkey Family. Eoosevelt bags a white-tailed Colobus monkey — Facts about this 
curious animal — The gorilla, the chimpanzee and other more or less man-like apes — 
Africa the paradise of the monkey 22b 

The Gorilla. Habits — Comparison with man — Its distinct eyebrows and lashes — Mouth, 
nose and cheeks' marked with wrinkles — Protruding jaw — A "bull-necked" animal — 
Method of killing gorillas 251 

The Story of the Lemur. Closely related to the monkey— Many varieties — Native of 
Madagascar — Arboreal habits — Queer eyes and ghostlike looks 255 

Story of the Mole. The most marvelous of all burrowing animals — -Lives underground — ■ 
Has remarkable hands — A look into its burrow 262 

Hunting the Rhinoceros. Colonel Eoosevelt reported killed by a rhinoceros — Exciting 
fight with this ferocious beast — The natives praise Bwana Tumbo — Interesting facts 
about the rhinoceros 267 

Wart-Hog's Native Haunts. Mr. Eoosevelt kills a wart-hog — The ugliest animal he saw 
in Africa — The story of this beast 279 

Story of the Linsang. A most beautifully colored animal with thick and velvety fur — 
Long bodies and slender necks 284 

Story of the Fox. A cunning animal — How the fox runs and climbs trees — A fox foils 
a hunter and a pack of hounds — The pretty little fennec of Africa..... 287 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. xi 

The Weasel. A blood-thirsty and courageous animal — Eats rats and birds — Scent like 
a dog — How African weasels tantalize lions 293 

Hunting the Giraffe. Mr. Eoosevelt bags two bull giraffes and Kermit rides down and 
kills one — Difficulties in hunting this long-sighted and wary animal — Peculiar habits 
of the giraffe 297 

The African Leopard. Colonel Eoosevelt bags a leopard — Captures cubs alive — Kermit 's 
good luck — He kills a leopard at a distance of twelve feet — Facts about this blood- 
thirsty feline • 303 

The Crocodile. East African rivers full of crocodiles — Hated by the natives — How the 
crocodile is hunted and trapped — The alligator 311 

The Civet. Hides by day and prowls at night — Hunted for its fine perfumery— Its tail 
longer than head and body combined — Civets taking up their abode in a house. . . .322 

Hunting the Antelope. Colonel Eoosevelt bags w a gnu, or wildebeest, on Alfred Pease's 
estate — Excitement and danger of the hunt — His first victim on African soil — Facts 
about the many varieties of antelope that crowd the East African velt 327 

The Zebra or Tiger-Horse. Colonel Eoosevelt secures a zebra for the National Museum — 
Natives hunt them for food — A herd of zebras on the velt — Hundreds of them in 
East Africa 351 

Africa's Greatest Bird. Mr. Eoosevelt 's visit to Sir Alfred Pease's ostrich farm — The 
story of this wonderful bird 357 

The Story of the Lizard. Some harmless and some poisonous — Loves to bask in the sun — • 
Frenzied by love, rage and hunger — Grows a new tail when mutilated 365 

The Story of the Shrew. A little insect-eater — At home in all temperate regions — Fond 
of fighting — A victim of owls — Lives underground 371 

Story of the Hedgehog. An animal covered with spikes — Eolls itself into a ball — Farm- 
ers believe that it sucks cows — Kills and eats snakes — Feeds on worms and snakes. .375 

The Wild Goat. A wary animal frequenting high mountains — -Sure-footed and odorous — - 
Sentinels keep watch while the flock feeds 379 

The Aard-Vark or Ant-Bear. The ugly and ungraceful earth-hog has a long prehensile 
tongue — Found on the Eoosevelt hunting grounds in East Africa 383 

Story of the Pangolin. Looks like a living pine cone — Lives on ants — How hunted — 
Its habits 385 

The Story of the Tenrec. Eats insects and resembles a hedge-hog — Pest to Madagascar 
farmers — Its flesh a great delicacy 387 

Hunting the Gazelle. Colonel Eoosevelt receives a Thompson gazelle for the Na- 
tional Museum — Many varieties of the gazelle family — East Africa's most graceful 
animal 391 

The Caffre Cat. The ancestor of the domestic cat — A native of Africa and Asia — Wor- 
shipped by the Egyptians 399 

Closing Incidents of the Roosevelt African Hunt. Search for the White Ehinoceros and 
other game — Interesting experiences in wildest and darkest Africa — Uganda and the 
Congo Free State — Down the Nile 




LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



Ex-President Eoosevelt Shooting a Bull Rhinoceros on the African Velt 2 

Photograph of Lion Face 6 

Roosevelt Meets a Rhinoceros 7 

Roosevelt and Lion 14 

A Wounded Stag Turning on the Hunter 1(5 

Roosevelt and Herd of Hippopotami 33 

Route of Roosevelt 's African Travels 35 

Native Troops of East Africa 36 

Natives Waiting for Meat 38 

Roosevelt Hunting Grounds 42 

A Fine Lioness 44 

An Extra Pine Feast for the Boys 46 

The Ostrich and African Crowned Crane 49 

Mombasa and the Old Portuguese Fort 51 

Zebra Attacked by a Lion 54 

Roosevelt 's Arrival at Kapiti Plains 57 

Head-Piece — Roosevelt Hunting Grounds 63 

Waterfall— Tana. River District 64 

Hippopotami Basking in the Sun 65 

Curing Strips of Antelope Meat After a Hunt 66 

Warriors, Women and Children Waiting to Greet the Great American 69 

The Hunter 's Paradise 73 

An Old Elephant Killed Near Mt. Elgon 76 

Skinning an Eland Antelope 77 

Trophies of the Hunt 79 

A Family of Lions 83 

Masai Wives Building a New Village 85 

Going for His Bride — Riding the Cow That Is to Pay for Her 86 

Young Man Honored for Killing a Lion 88 

Playing Bao 89 

Roosevelt Viewing the Country Along the Uganda Railway 95 

Port Florence 98 

Crocodile Caught on the Shore of Victoria Nyanza 101 

An East African Farm 103 

Black-Maned East African Lion 104 

Ex-President Roosevelt Killing His First Lions in East Africa 105 

A Safari on March Through East African Wilderness .108 

xii 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. xiii 

African Lion HI 

Lion Cubs and Their Habits 113 

A Troop of Lions Seen in South Africa 115 

The Maneless Lion of Senegal 117 

Lion Cubs That Look Like Lambs 119 

A Playful Old Lion . 121 

The King of Beasts Drinking at a Pool 123 

Sir Edwin Landseer's World-Famous Painting of a Lion 124 

A Perfect Specimen of a Full-Grown Lion 125 

Head-Piece — The Mountain Lion 127 

Mountain Lion, Treed 128 

A Perfect Specimen of Mountain Lion 129 

Buffalo Hunters in East Africa 131 

A Visit for the Exchange of Presents 133 

A Family of American Buffalo or Bison 135 

American Buffaloes — Methods of Hunting Them ' 137 

European Buffaloes Fighting 139 

Arnee Buffalo of Assam 141 

Common Indian Buffalo 142 

Cape Buffaloes 143 

Head-Piece — Story of the Fossa 145 

The Fossa 146 

An Ivory and Palm Oil Caravan 148 

Skinning an Elephant 151 

Native Hunter 's Camp in the Jungle , 152 

Female Indian Elephant 155 

Indian Elephant Trumpeting 157 

African Elephant , 159 

Baby Elephant of the Soudan 161 

Scenes in an Elephant 's Life 162 

One of Mr. Seymour 's Hunting Elephants 163 

Herd of African Elephants 165 

Bactrian Camel of Central Asia 169 

Arabian Camels 171 

A Baby Camel 173 

Photographs of Hyena Heads 175 

Spotted Hyena 177 

Head-Piece — Story of the Wild Sheep 179 

A Mouflon Family 181 

A Mouflon of Sardinia 182 

"Big Horns ' ' of the Rocky Mountains 183 

Barbary, or Maned Sheep 184 

How the Mungoose Fights 186 

Indian Mungooses 187 

South African Mungooses or Meerkats 189 

The Caracal or Desert Lynx 192 

The Canada Lynx 193 

Ex-President Roosevelt Meets Twelve Hippopotami 197 

Draggi rag the Hippo to Shore 198 

Natives Dragging the Hippo to Camp 199 

Kaverondo Women Dragging Hippopotamus Head to Village for Their Chief 200 

The Hippopotamus 203 

East African Wild Hog 206 

A Family of Wild Hogs 207 

Wild Hog of the Philippines 208 

South African Wild Hog 209 

Porcupines of Siam 212 

Porcupines of Morocco 213 

Head-Biece — Story of the Wapi 215 



XIV 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



The Wapi or Okapi • 21 1 

The European Jackal 220 

Arabian Wolf Jackal 221 

Jackals of Siam 222 

Mount Kilimanjaro 22 ^ 

Colobus Monkey 22 5 

Five Beauties in the Kilimanjaro District 226 

A Monkey Bridge. Monkeys Crossing a River 227 

Monkeys Stoning Mr. Seymour 230 

Langur Monkeys of the Himalaya Mountains 231 

Macaque or Brown Monkey 233 

A Rough Rider in Africa 234 

A White-Nosed Monkey of Liberia 235 

Having Fun with a Crocodile 236 

An Old Hanuman Ape 237 

A Good Temperance Lesson 238 

A Dog-Faced Baboon 239 

A White-Handed Gibbon • 241 

The Malbrook, or Organ Grinder 's Monkey 243 

The Chimpanzee and Its Habits 245 

Young Ourang-Outangs at Play 247 

Sacred Apes of India 249 

Marmoset Tearing Pictures of Bugs Out of a Book and Eating Them 250 

Head-Piece— Story of the Gorilla 251 

Gorilla and Young 253 

Head-Piece — Story of the Lemur 255 

The Ruffed Lemur 257 

The Mole and Its Burrow 264 

African Two-Horned Rhinoceros Heads 266 

East African Bull Rhinoceros 269 

East African Rubber Farm 270 

Great Indian Rhinoceros 273 

Indian Rhinoceros Fighting an Elephant 274 

Indian Rhinoceros After Shedding Its Horn 275 

Two-Horned African Rhinoceros 277 

Young East African Wart-Hog 279 

Head of Wart-Hog • 280 

Leopard Ready to Leap on a Wart-Hog 281 

Wart-Hog of South Eastern Africa 283 

Head-Piece — Story of the Linsang 284 

Linsangs *. 285 

Family of Foxes 287 

Red Foxes in Winter 288 

Arctic Fox with Murre 's Egg 289 

African Asse Fox 291 

Fennccs, or African Foxes 292 

Head-Piece— Story of the Weasel 293 

The Weasel and Its Prey 295 

( ; Lraffes Browsing Among the Trees 296 

Habits of the Giraffe 300 

Giraffes of the Kalahari Desert 301 

Leopards in the Jungle 306 

.V Persian Leopard and Its Habits 307 

A Pair of Chitas or Hunting Leopards 309 

A Young Hunting Leopard 310 

The Headwaters of the Nile 313 

Three Crocodiles Captured in the Athi River 315' 

Ganges Crocodile Devouring a Child 317 

Alligator Waiting for Something to Turn Up 319 

Head-Piece— Story of the Civet 322 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Xv 

An African and an Indian Civet 323 

An African Civet 324 

Photographs of Antelopes Secured for Museum 326 

Native Bearers Carrying Waterbuck to Camp, Where They Will Have a Good Feast 327 

Photograph of an Eland Bull Whose Skin Was Prepared for the Museum 328 

An Elar-d Photographed Just Before the Finishing Shot 329 

Waterbuck Shot Near Mochakos 330 

The Gemsbok Slaying the Lion 332 

A South African Gemsbok 333 

Female Sabre-Horned Antelope and Fawn * 335 

A Buck Eland 336 

A Nigai Antelope 337 

South African Native Hunting Gnu . 338 

The Blue or Brindled Gnu 339 

South African Bosch Bock 341 

Prong-Buck or American Antelope 343 

Indian Black Buck 344 

The Addax, Egyptian Antelope 345 

Female Swamp Antelope -. 346 

A Young Blessbok 347 

A Waterbuck 348 

Female Nilgai 349 

The Hartebeest 350 

Zebra and Horses 351 

Herd of Zebra Chased by a Lion 353 

A Family of Zebras 354 

East African Zebra 355 

Photograph of an Ostrich 's Nest 358 

A Missionary Sewing School 359 

A Male Ostrich 361 

How' South American Ostriches Are Hunted 362 

African Ostriches 363 

A Group of Lizards 365 

The Black Iguana in a Banana Tree 367 

Water Monitors Bobbing a Nest • 368 

G~een Wall Lizards 369 

Fish and Fishermen 371 

Water Shrews 373 

Head-Piece — Story of the Hedge-Hog 375 

European Hedge-Hogs 377 

Head-Piece. Story of the Wild Goat 379 

Spiral-Horned Goat of Afghanistan 380 

Alpine Wild Goats 381 

The Aard-Vark and Its Habits 384 

Head-Piece — Story of the Pangolin . 385 

The Pangolin 386 

White Ibis. Great and Smaller Bustard 387 

The Tenric and Its Habits 388 

A Herd of Gazelles 393 

Giraffe Gazelle and Dwarf Antelope 391 

The Goitred Gazelle 394 

Photograph of Male Giraffe Gazelle 395 

Red-Fronted Gazelle , 397 

The Caffre Cat, Worshipped by Egyptians 400 




A WOUNDED STAG TURNING ON THE HUNTER. 

At times when shot and lying as though, dead, the animal suddenly starts to his feet and 
Xvi attacks with great ferocity. 




THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 



WHY HE WENT TO EAST AFRICA. 



Outdoor ife and physical adventure have always seemed as natural and 
necessary to Theodore Roosevelt as political enterprise and manly public 
service. It is 10I on record that he has ever been fond of hunting small game, 
either in the Rncky Mountains or more settled sections of the United States. 
The bracing air of the American wilds, the free sweep of the western moun- 
tains and plains, and the excitements of running down the grizzly, have been 
the means of collecting and maintaining that wonderful vitality which has so 
completely sustained him amid the burdens and perplexities of his public 
career. It has made him brave in war and fearless in attacking those whom 
he considered foes io the nation and society. 

But why did he' go to Africa? Could he not have continued to hunt big 
game at home ? It was impossible for a man of his temperament to do other- 
wise than start for Africa. He knew all about the big game of the United 
States. He commenced to hunt it, as a young man on a North Dakota ranch, 
continuing that phase of his career over the western plains and mountains 
after he was President of the United States. As a young man, he wrote his 
first book, "Hunting Trips of a Ranchman," and has published four or five 
others, covering broader ground with the extension of his experience. What 
more natural than that, having exhausted the American subject, he should 
turn to the most famous hunting grounds for big game in the world? It is 
also quite conceivable that he wished to cut loose from the strenuous public 
life he had been experiencing for several years. There is, further, a special 

33 



34 THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 

reason for his determination to experience the most electric thrills known to 
hunters ; by pitting his keenness, ingenuity and stamina against the same traits 
characteristic of the lords of the brute creation. Roosevelt as a huntsman was 
universally known and greatly admired among the true sportsmen of the 
world, and whenever one of this class came to the United States he seldom 
failed to have an interview with the President, and whatever the pressure of 
the affairs of state Roosevelt snatched time to interview the hunter of big 
beasts. Among these was Richard Tjader, whose exciting tales of his elephant 
killings, lion trackings and ridings, buffalo hunts and other adventures in 
British East Africa, are said to have caused Roosevelt's final decision, so 
that his trip was practically determined about two years before the expiration 
of his presidential service. 

HIS VOYAGE TO MOMBASA. 

On March 23, 1909, two weeks after President Taft had been inaugurated 
as his successor, Mr. Roosevelt left New York on the steamship "Hamburg" 
for a fifteen months' recreation trip, including a hunt in the protectorate 
of British East Africa, a voyage in the waters of the great Victoria Nyanza 
lake and a journey down the valley of the Nile. He was to be the head of 
an expedition in active charge of R. J. Cunninghame, of Nairobi, the head- 
quarters of the Uganda Railroad. Not only is Mr. Cunninghame one of the 
most expert of African sportsmen, but the party was also to include F. C. 
Selous, the famous hunter and author. Mr. Roosevelt's son, Kermit, who 
accompanied him from the first, was to be official photographer of the expedi- 
tion. On March 30th the "Hamburg" arrived at St. Michaels, the Azores, 
where the Roosevelts were received by the American Consul and given God- 
speed toward Gibraltar. The steamship made the British stronghold April 
2nd, and after Mr. Roosevelt and his son had been entertained by the com- 
mandant the voyage was continued to Naples. There the ex-President was 
greeted with all the honors due to his distinguished character, and in its 
glorious harbor he found awaiting him, gaily decked with flags and crowded 
with welcoming crew, passengers and visitors, the steamship "Admiral." The 
latter was to bear the party to Mombasa, the port of entry and capital of 
British East Africa, and the beginning of the great Uganda railroad, or back- 
bone of the Big Game Hunting Grounds. It was at Naples that Mr. Selous 
joined the party and for nearly two weeks thereafter, or until the boat landed 
at Mombasa, the ex-President's appetite for action was whetted daily by the 



THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 



35 



ROUTE OF ROOSEVELT'S 

AFRICAN TRAVELS AS 

PUBLISHED IN THE 

OUTLOOK. 




NjfSIoaibasa v 



36 



THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 




Copyright 1909, by 
Underwood & Underwood 



NATIVE TROOPS OF EAST AFRICA 



narratives of his companion, covering his own huntings of big game in the 
country to which they were bound. The impressive incident of the voyage 
was the stop at Messina, April 6th, during which Mr. Roosevelt met King 
Victor Emmanuel, received the royal thanks for American sympathy and 
generosity in behalf of the earthquake victims, and then, with unconcealed 



THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 37 

emotion, viewed the pitiful ruins of the stricken city. The "Admiral" arrived 
at Port Said on the evening of April 9th, and about half way between the 
Mediterranean and Red seas the scientific branch of the party landed to 
make a collection of bird specimens. The only other incident which occurred 
in the Suez canal, worthy of comment, was the passing of the "City of Paris," 
crowded with British passengers, who heartily cheered the ex-President and 
had the satisfaction of seeing his famous and infectious smile when he noted 
the large "Teddy bear" displayed on deck. The "Admiral" passed out of the 
canal on the evening of the following day; left Aden, Arabia, April 15th, and 
after running down the dreary coast of the Red Sea, with, only a short stop at 
Somaliland, on the 21st of April landed the party at Mombasa in the midst 
of a pouring rain, notwithstanding which, the shore' was crowded with 
Europeans, Indians and natives, and a military guard wi S drawn up in honor 
of the ex-President, who was welcomed by the provincial Commissioner and 
conducted to the government house. Mr. Roosevelt was dined and hospitably 
entertained, but, with the enthusiasm of the true sportsman, made his prep- 
arations for the hunt as rapidly as possible. 

HUNTING PREPARATIONS AND OUTFIT. 

The first thing to do is to secure a hunter's license, and it is a fair illustra- 
tion of Roosevelt's democracy, as well as of his true sportsmanship, to state 
that he refused to accept special privileges, but insisted upon abiding by the 
common laws governing the killing of big game. These provide for a license 
ranging from $85 for a bull elephant to $25 for a giraffe or rhinoceros and 
$15 for an antelope; limit the killing to two> each of elephant, rhinoceros, 
hippopotamus and zebra and classify and protect as Royal Game not only 
these animals, but buffalo, eland, impalla and ostrich. Lions and leopards may 
be killed without a license, as they are classed as "vermin," pests fit to be 
exterminated. Further,, shooting from trains is forbidden; so that the big 
game of British East Africa is protected against reckless and unsportsmanlike 
slaughter. 

In employing native help, it is usually figured that thirty porters (at about 
$4.50 per month) will be required for each white in the party, and the average 
load is sixty pounds. Gun bearers and caravan headmen are paid about three 
times that amount, if they be Swahili, and some $25 per month if Somali. 
Allowances are also made for food, and if the hunter wishes to abide by the 
strict letter of the law he takes out a government caravan license. The latter 



38 



THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 



binds you to pay your men what you stipulate, provide each with not less than 
a quart of cereals a day, and a water bottle and blanket, and furnish each gang 
of eight with a tent and cooking pot. The legal allowance of food, however, 
would be far from satisfactory to the average native. It is generally supposed 
that the inhabitants of cold countries are the great meat eaters, but the stories 
told of the quantities of meat consumed by the porters and other natives at- 




Copyright 1909, by 
Underwood & Underwood NATIVES WAITING FOR MEAT. 

Hippopotamus dragged from Victoria Nyanza, with six bullets in his head. 



tached to a "safari," or African hunting party, would discount the tales illus- 
trating the capacity of the blubber-eating Esquimaux. They grumble if they 
do not have fresh meat daily ; and they not only pick the bones clean, but ex- 
tract the marrow. A fair-sized party will consume two elands and waterbucks 
daily, if the hunters can furnish them with such rations. 



THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 39 



BRAVEST NATIVE HUNTERS OF AFRICA. 

From all accounts, there is a very good reason — in fact, many good rea- 
sons — why the Somali helpers, or shikaris, command the highest pay of all 
the native hunters of Africa. They are scrupulously clean and, like all Mo- 
hammedans, absolutely temperate. Fatalists in religion, they have no fear of 
death. If they are to die by the terrible jaws or paws of a lion — they die; 
thai is all there is to it. With their light complexions, wavy hair, tall, slender 
and wiry bodies, they are largely Arabian, both in appearance and in fact. 
As proclaimed by one who has cause to stand by his words, "Nothing con- 
nected with East African lion shooting is more heroic than the conduct of the 
Somali shikaris. No Sahib who treats them half decently is likely to find 
cause to complain of their fidelity. When peril threatens, they are as ready to 
die for him as most others are ready to desert." Countless stories are told 
illustrative of their intrepidity. For instance, the fresh tracks of a lion lead 
to the mouth of a dark cave, high enough only to admit the two Somalis who, 
without a moment's pause, start for the opening, one armed with a rifle and 
the other with only his skinning knife. The white Sahib shouts a protest and 
a warning, at which one of them answers cheerily, without a tremor in his 
voice, "Inshallah [God willing] we come back." They then enter the cave 
and even toss stones into its darkness, inviting in every way, a charge of the 
terrible king of beasts. Again, a wounded lion charges a white hunter and 
his Somali gun bearer. As the beast crushes the former to the ground, the 
rifle, which had previously been broken and imperfectly repaired, falls apart. 
Being unable to fire it to advantage, the Sahib rams the gun barrel down the 
wounded lion's throat. As the two lay struggling on the ground — the beast 
commencing to maul the hunter most fearfully — the Somali circles around 
endeavoring to find an opening to dispatch the lion with the rifle in his posses- 
sion. After several vain attempts, the native drops the gun and springs upon 
the back of the infuriated beast, biting its ears and pounding its eyes with 
such ferocity that it turns upon him and all three fall to the earth together — 
the Somali beneath the lion and the effective rifle under both. This diversion 
gives the Sahib an opportunity to arise, pull the weapon free and blow out the 
lion's brains, thus saving his faithful and brave follower from the death 
which he invited in order to rescue his chief. The air of the hunting grounds 
in British East Africa is full of such stories, and it is therefore quite natural 
that the true white sportsman is perfectly willing to pay the high wages so 



40 THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 

fully earned by the Somalis. Besides such invaluable native hunters, a safari 
must have a number of Somali ponies and Abyssinian mules. 

An outfit for one man will usually consist of a white safari (or party) 
leader, a headman, gun-bearer, cook, mess-boy and tent-boy (all Somalis) ; 
from twenty to twenty-five native porters; tents, beds and provisions — all 
furnished at from $3.50 to $5.00 per month. 

As on all subjects under the sun, experts disagree as to the most effective 
weapons and balls to be used on big game. Heavy-bore rifles have, as a rule, 
been discarded, and perhaps the favorites of the present day are English 
double-barreled .450 cordite for big game, and a magazine rifle of .256 to .350 
for deer and smaller quadrupeds. Upon one point the hunters of big African 
game now generally agree, that is, "Avoid throwing your lead into the ani- 
mals, unless you have a fair chance of reaching brain, heart or spine"; for 
such is their extraordinary vitality that, irrespective of hits, they run the 
faster if the bullet does not strike a vital organ. When a hartbeest bull will 
carry nine big Mauser bullets in his carcass for two miles before slowing up, 
and a "hippo" twenty-two 303's before admitting himself beaten, it is the wise 
part of the hunter to wait for his opportunity to get a fairly fatal shot. 

THE TRUE AFRICAN SPORTSMAN. 

Theodore Roosevelt is built on the lines of the true African sportsman, 
who glories in the fact that there is no land in the world which offers such 
hazard of limb and life, in the pursuit of game, as his own. Not one of his 
big game but will easily carry as much imbedded lead as the grizzly bear ; and 
bruin cannot compare with the lion, buffalo, elephant or rhinoceros in the im- 
petuosity of his charge. The old and true African hunter has nothing but the 
most intense scorn for the white who would poison a lion or a leopard, and has 
even little patience with him who lays set guns or traps. In the interests of 
science, the capture of smaller animals may be thus made, but it is to the 
typical African hunter an exhibition of inexcusable cowardice for a man to 
thus destroy big game. When there is more than one white hunter in the 
party, it is customary for true sportsmen to agree before setting out upon the 
division of the killings and the order of first shots, some even preferring to 
pitch their camps at least twenty miles apart in order to avoid any crossing of 
lines or conflicting claims. 

The idea is rather exploded that, in order to get the most out of a big- 
game hunt, one must go into it without taking comfortable tents, an abun- 



THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 41 

dance of provisions and a big medicine chest. "Roughing it" is all right; but 
the hunter will get enough of that, with probable attacks on life and limb, in 
the natural order of his trip, without endangering his health and sapping his 
strength by exposure to tropical dew, rain and insects and the eating of un- 
healthful foods. Native villages or railway points are usually relied upon for 
eggs, flour and vegetables, but all modern parties, like £he Roosevelt expedi- 
tion, now lay in a good supply of sugar and canned meats and tomatoes. The 
medicine chest must contain, above all, an abundant supply of lint bandages, 
besides the usual antidotes for poisons and powerful cauterizers to prevent 
fatal results from possible wounds inflicted by the terrific carrion claws of 
His Royal Highness, the King of Beasts. Brandy and champagne are also 
considered desirable as medical supplies, but the true sportsman knows how 
necessary it is to confine all liquors to their legitimate province, for the moment 
they are taken as indulgences the capacity of the drinkers for endurance and 
keen work is materially lessened. 

SCOPE OF THE ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 

All such preparations having been made by the great expedition, of 
which Mr. Roosevelt was the most distinguished member, the party boarded 
a modern railway train drawn by an American Baldwin engine and pulled out 
from Mombasa for the Kapiti plains, the districts adjoining the headwaters 
of the Athi and Tana rivers and the Mount Kenia region — which were to be 
the main hunting grounds thrown open to the ex-President. This great 
district embracing every variety of African country — plain, jungle, swamp, 
forest and hill — not only swarms with game, both big and small, but contains 
fifty varieties of the larger species, and is therefore probably unexcelled any- 
where in the world. It lies northeast of the railroad, with Nairobi as its 
central station, and is almost midway along the line, which extends 584 miles 
from Mombasa to Port Florence, the terminus, on Lake Victoria Nyanza, To 
be quite accurate Nairobi is 327 miles from the Indian Ocean, but this central 
section of the Roosevelt hunting grounds extends considerably north and far 
east of that city, the headquarters of the Uganda railway. This is the para- 
dise of the modern African hunter, not only because of the abundance and 
variety of great game, but from the fact that several of the famous sportsmen 
of the world have established there magnificent ranches, or private hunting 
grounds, on which they entertain with the lavishness befitting their rank. 
Among them are the splendid Heatley, Pease and McMillan estates, the mas- 



42 



THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 



ters of which threw open their homes and grounds to Mr. Roosevelt. There 
are great government reserves, both north and south of the railroad, extending 
from Tsavo to Kijabe, some two hundred and thirty miles, and the railroad 




ROOSEVEI/T HUNTING GROUNDS 



traveler soon notes that these sections of the protectorate are literally crowded 
with game of every description. But the animals themselves seem to know 
the limits of their safety and also the game law forbidding shooting from 
trains, and seldom leave the reserves except in periods of extended drought; 



THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 43 

while not only such "vermin" as lions and leopards boldly stand near the track 
and gaze at the tantalized passengers, but the timid gazelle and the wary 
giraffe appear to discard their very natures. 

AWFUL COST OF THE UGANDA RAILROAD. 

When the statistician finds that about $35,000,000 was spent in the build- 
ing of the Uganda railway from its commencement, in January, 1896, to its 
completion, in 1902, he pronounces the cost great. The philanthropist and the 
enterprising citizen of the world asserts that the cost was small, considering 
that it has changed the face of a large portion of Equatorial Africa; opened 
up a wonderful country for the scientist and cartographer and a land full of 
charms and surprises for the artist ; thrown safeguards around the lives of the 
Christian missionaries ; introduced the world to one of the most ^advanced 
and promising native states of Africa; created a real scenic railway for the 
pleasure and instruction of thousands of travelers — in fact, driven a great 
wedge into interior Africa for the entrance of civilization, and last (but great- 
est in the estimation of the hunter of big game), made it possible for the true 
African 'sportsman to> be placed, comfortable and fresh, in his hunting grounds, 
prepared to give the full strength of his body and the keenness of his mind to 
the strenuous work before him. The journey of nearly six hundred miles 
from the coast to Lake Victoria Nyanza, taken by the cumbersome caravan 
at an expenditure of three months' time and a small fortune in money, is now 
accomplished in less than forty-eight hours at a cost of from $5.84 to $40.4. 
The railroad rates are six cents, three cents and one cent per mile, according 
to the class of accommodations. It is not on record that any white man has 
ridden the 584 miles on a third-class ticket in the "Jim Crow" cars ; the latter 
are monopolized by the natives. Jim Crows, in turn, are barred from the 
first and second-class cars, which are comfortable and cool. 

If only seven million British pounds had been expended on this great 
creation of New Africa, the cost would indeed be small in view of what has 
already been accomplished and the far greater benefits of the future. But 
disease, poisonous insects and reptiles, and, more terrible still, the carnivorous 
beasts of East Africa, collected an awful toll of human life before the Uganda 
railway was completed. A^hough some of the warlike native tribes, such as 
the Masai, gave the early surveyors and builders some trouble by cutting off 
scattered parties, the agents before mentioned were chiefly responsible for the 
great sacrifice of life. What has been said of this country is true of any 



44 



THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 



tropical land — "if a man has any physical weakness, Africa is certain to fine- 
it out" ; and it is generally accepted as the final word that no white man can 
maintain the strenuous life in Africa for more than five years. In spite of 
the liberal use of quinine, fevers and malaria laid low hundreds of railroad 
builders, while toward the lake terminus the silent, insidious tsetse flies 
inoculated many native workmen with the fatal Sleeping Sickness. 




A FINK WONESS. 



But the man-eating lions were the supreme terror and scourge of the 
builders of the road, and they alone added to its cost more than a human life 
per mile. The greatest campaign conducted by the builders against the man- 
eaters was in the vicinity of Tsavo station, about 130 miles from Mombasa. 
After twenty-nine native workmen had been killed and eaten, and others 
attacked and badly mauled, three young railroad engineers side-tracked a car 
at a place near the station where a few days before a lion had sprung upon a 
slowly-moving train, like a flash seized a man in one of the open cars and 



THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 45 

leaped with him (as a cat would carry a helpless mouse) into the jungle. The 
would-be avengers of this horror, and many like it, arranged to have one of 
their number on constant guard, with rifle in hand, ready to shoot the blood- 
thirsty prowlers at a moment's notice. The closed car was strongly built 
and, as the sentry on duty placed himself so as to always command the doors 
and windows, the risk was not considered great. But, at the midnight watch 
young Ryal, overcome by the tropical heat, fell asleep, and the huge man- 
eater, who had kept even closer vigil than his human victim, crept through 
the half-open door, seized the sleeper in his great jaws and sprung through 
the glass of one of the windows into the jungle. Not long after, the picked 
and whitened bones of Ryal were found in the vicinity. This death of a 
white engineer, under such circumstances, resulted in the organization of a 
great hunting party under J. H. Patterson, of the engineering corps, and 
among the lions killed was one identified as the slayer of Ryal ; for in his hide, 
only recently healed, were found several pieces of window glass. 

SPECIAL OBJECTS OF THE EXPEDITION. 

The main preliminaries of the great Roosevelt expedition have been 
described; in other words, the background and setting of the hunt have 
been placed in the picture. Special inquiries will then arise, naturally 
and legitimately. The first may be, what are the special objects of 
this expedition? The uninformed may imagine that it is only a jun- 
keting trip for the special recreation and amusement of the hearty ex- 
president. Roosevelt obtained a necessary outing and had his inning 
with the big African game, but the serious and special object of the 
expedition, as announced by Secretary Charles Walcott, of the Smith- 
sonian Institution, in December, 1908, is to gather specimens of natural 
history — beasts, birds, and plants — for the government museum em- 
braced by the institution named. The regular representatives of the 
Smithsonian Institution were Major Edgar A. Mearns, a retired officer 
of the medical corps of the United States Army, and Messrs. Edmund 
Heller and Alden Loring. Mr. Roosevelt was the general head of the 
expedition and R. J. Cunninghame was in active charge, being upon 
the grounds before the arrival of the main party, selecting porters, hunt- 
ing animals and a complete outfit. Mr. Cunninghame was both an ex- 
pert African hunter and had previously made collections in natural his- 
tory for the British Museum. Mr. Heller, a graduate of Stanford Uni- 
versity, was an expert taxidermist, and had traveled over both the 



46 THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 

Americas in his expeditions for the Smithsonian Institution. Mr. Loring 
was also a thorough student of natural history. So that the personnel 
of the party representing its scientific spirit, was everything which 
could be desired in the matters of earnestness and efficiency. When 
F. C. Selous joined the expedition at Naples, Mr. Roosevelt and his 




Copyright 1909, by an extra fine feast for the boys. 

Underwood & Underwood. 



son Kermit had the privilege of meeting one of the most famous hunt- 
ers of African game in the world. Both he and Mr. Cunninghame, with 
the hosts who entertained the visiting Americans, saw to it that neither 
father nor son were placed in unnecessary danger. Notwithstanding 
which the Roosevelts repeatedly demonstrated their wonderful marks- 
manship and coolness. 



THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 47 

- ROOSEVELT'S GUNS AND AMMUNITION. 

As was characteristic, Mr. Roosevelt proclaimed his positive nation- 
ality even in the matter of selecting the weapons and ammunition for 
his "safari," discarding even the standard British arms and entering the 
hunting grounds for big game with an American 'repeating rifle of far 
lighter bore than that in common use. It is known as the "forty caliber" 
and although thirty years ago it would have been considered suicidal 
for a sportsman to contend with lions, rhinoceri and buffaloes with such 
a "toy," improvements in high pressure, smokeless powder and bullets 
have rendered the rifle a most effective weapon for the ^strong-lived 
game of Africa. With the soft-pointed bullet to tear through the com- 
paratively tender hide of the lion and buffalo, opening out like an um- 
brella in its passage and making terrible gaps in its progress, and the 
keen pointed steel bullet for the tough rhinoceros or hippopotamus, the 
American rifle of .405 caliber and terrific smashing power proved its 
superiority on many a hotly contested hunting field. For lighter game, 
such as deer and gazelle, Colonel Roosevelt carried .303 caliber repeat- 
ing shot guns, popularly known as "thirties," and for feathered game he 
had two twelve-gauge repeating shot guns. His shot gun ammunition 
was specially loaded for him in brass shells, and the wads were care- 
fully covered with wax to be waterproof and prevent their swelling in 
the moist climate of the country. 

OFF ON THE ROOSEVELT SAFARI. 

Less than two days were spent by Mr. Roosevelt and his party at 
Mombasa, but they were sufficiently full of action even for the ex-presi- 
dent. Upon his arrival at the railroad station he found a guard of 
honor, composed of marines and blue jackets from the British cruiser 
"Pandora," drawn up to receive him, as well as various officials and 
civilians. The station was decorated with intertwined American and 
British flags. The ex-president was the special guest of F. J. Jack- 
son, acting governor of the protectorate, and in the evening the Mom- 
basa Club entertained him, with his son Kermit, Edmund Heller, F. C. 
Selous and R. F. Cunninghame. Major Mearns and J. Alden Loring, 
the other members of the party, had not disembarked from the "Ad- 
miral" on account of the heavy rains. Mr. Jackson, in proposing Mr. 



48 THE ROOSEVELT HUNT. 

Roosevelt's health, first read a cabled message of welcome from King 
Edward, and then smilingly remarked that their honored visitor had 
left the "big stick" at home and had come out to Africa to make use of 
the rifle, concluding by promising him an immense variety of game and 
good sport. Mr. Roosevelt replied by praising the British people for 
letting light into the dark places of the earth, and for their wonderful 
work in East Africa. He expressed pleasure over every feature of his 
reception and briefly referred to his future plans. On the following 
morning the ex-president sent a telegram to the Emperor of Germany 
thanking him for the courtesies received aboard the "Hamburg," hav- 
ing previously thanked King Edward for his message of greeting. He 
then spent the remainder of the forenoon at the government house, 
while Mr. Cunninghame was flying around among the porters and other 
"articles" of the safari making final preparations, and the other mem- 
bers of the party were occupying their time, previous to the departure 
of the train for Kapiti Plains, in driving around the city. 




MOMBASA TO NAIROBI. 



OLD MOMBASA, OR THE BATTLE CITY. 

What did Roosevelt and his party see on the first limb of their trip over the 
Uganda railroad from Mombasa to Nairobi, which was for months the head- 
quarters of the great hunt, as it is of the great East Africa railroad line? 
During their short rest at Mombasa they saw a picturesque jumble of Old 
and New Africa in a town of 30,000 people — lithe, dignified Arabs, stout 
Soudanese, calm and swarthy Indians, alert and often uniformed Somalis, 
stolid British officials and polite army and navy attaches— the native populace 
numbering some 29,500. From the shores of a low-lying and small island, 
at some distance from the Indian Ocean, rises the white Moorish walls of Old 
Mombasa, Portuguese Mombasa, or "The Battle City." And well has it 
earned its native name ; but the sieges and counter-sieges which it suffered at 
the hands of the Portuguese, who craved it as the great depot of the trade in 
ivory, skins, rubber and slaves, and of the Arabs, who naturally wished to 
hold it, came to an end when the Imperial British East African Company 
opened up the country, in 1887. It was surely time that the wars over its pos- 
session should cease, for they had been in evidence since the Portuguese 
first bombarded and looted the city in 1500. Portugal again destroyed it in 
1505, fortified and rebuilt it a few years later, and was expelled by the Arabs 

49 



50 MOMBASA TO NAIROBI. 

in 1586. Not many years after a Portuguese admiral battered the city to the 
ground; next it was ravaged by an "irregular" savage tribe; and Portugal 
returned in 1630 to construct the massive fortress whose ruins still overlook 
the sea. Next it was the turn of the Arabs, whose archers shot the garrison 
to death after its surrender. Another Portuguese fleet avenged the outrage, 
and in 1665 the fortress fell before the five months' siege of the Arabs. The 
Arabs held complete possession of the island from 1698 to 1826, when the 
Sultan of Zanzibar, after four years of terrific warfare, conquered the Battle 
City and adjoining territory. Then followed over fifty years of wars and 
feuds in which Mombasa was dragged back and forth, wrenched and tortured 
in every joint, until the coming of peace and order under the protection of 
Great Britain ; and now what is left of the old Portuguese fort overlooks the 
mansions and bungalows of European officials and merchants, surrounded by 
large and elegant gardens. 



NEW MOMBASA, THE BRITISH CAPITAL. 

New, or British, Mombasa, which lies nearer the ocean than the old, con- 
tains also the government buildings and the cathedral. A noticeable feature 
of the modern town is the intricate network of tramways, which not only 
cover the chief thoroughfares, but branch off to every house; and coolies are 
seen everywhere, pushing along the private cars which transport the aristo- 
cratic Europeans to and from their offices. Although the two or three hotels 
in Mombasa are but indifferent, there is an excellent club, which is patronized 
by Englishmen, Americans and travelers in general. The East India Bank is 
also an important feature of the modern city. New Mombasa has a hearty 
welcome for white visitors, but, unfortunately, possesses no harbor worthy of 
the name. Some two miles to the southeast, however, is a sister port of 
Kilindini, whose harbor affords anchorage for ships of the largest tonnage 
and which even rivals the far-famed Delagoa Bay in Southeast or Portu- 
guese Africa. Kilindini harbor, therefore, first receives the important pas- 
sengers and cargoes destined for British East Africa and Mombasa. The 
trade in ivory and hides has also gone to the more convenient port, and it is 
not beyond the possible to foresee a shifting of the government headquarters 
and the railroad terminus to this admirable commercial center. 



52 MOMBASA TO NAIROBI. 

CLIMBING THE DESERT OF TARU TO VOL 

From the Indian Ocean the Uganda railroad climbs steadily to the high 
northwestern plateaus at Nairobi ; and more than one hundred and fifty miles 
beyond, where it reaches its extreme elevation of more than 8,300 feet above 
sea level. The train pulls out of Mombasa, glides past the large freight depots 
and docks at Kilindini, and in a few minutes is thundering over the seventeen 
hundred feet of iron bridge which spans the strait between the city and the 
mainland. 

The nine miles of road intervening from this point to Mazeras station 
takes the traveler through a country of cocoanut palms and mangoes and 
along the route are well-kept Indian plantations, neat Wayganika and Swahili 
cottages and villages, and other evidences of New Africa and the civilizing 
effects of the modern railroad. The entire narrow -belt of country between the 
coast and Mazeras station, which marks the commencement of a desert 
country, is seen to be lined in every direction with little brown paths leading 
from the open places into the copse or jungle, or toward the palisades enclosing 
native huts, the larger collections of which are called, by courtesy, villages. 

TARU DESERT AND OLD CARAVAN ROUTE. 

From Mazeras to Voi, the distance is ninety-four miles, and as the native 
farms and villages of this pretty belt of country, interspersed with remnants 
of forest growth, are left behind the road enters the dreary waste known as 
the desert of Taru. It is true that patches of dry grass, or thorny .growths, 
are scattered over its surface ; but as Roosevelt and his fellow travelers viewed 
from the comfortable seats in the speeding train the old caravan road stretch- 
ing ahead for mile after mile over this juiceless and sandy plain, they were 
doubtless thankful that they were living in the new days. The desert is by no 
means destitute of animal life, herds of gazelles, packs of jackals, a prowling 
hyena, and an occasional leopard or lion, moving unconcernedly over its sur- 
face. But it by no means compares with the natural zoo which is offered 
further to the North. 

GLORIOUS MOUNT KILIMANJARO. 

At Voi, one hundred and three miles from Mombasa — about a third of the 
distance to Nairobi — the government has provided a comfortable bungalow 
for the accommodation of tourists who may wish to stop off and trek it, one 



MOMBASA TO NAIROBI. 53 

hundred miles to the Northwest, to that splendid glittering and burnished 
cone, seen from Voi, like a shimmering blaze in the clouds and known to 
lovers of nature as one of her most glorious exhibitions. Geographers call it 
Mt. Kilimanjaro and describe it as the highest peak in Africa, 19,200 feet 
above Mombasa at the sea. "The Mountain of the Spirit Njaro" appeals to 
all the unbounded superstitions of the native African j and well it may. A 
good government road leads from the railroad to the very base of the moun- 
tain, if the tourist decides to make the trip. If taken afoot, especially in the 
hot season, it is a most trying walk; but it is nothing compared to the ascent 
of the mountain itself — the climbing from a heat of some no° Fahrenheit, 
through forests of bamboo and cacti, into the region of gradually thinning" 
vegetation, to the rocks and eternal snows and glaciers, whose radiant reflec- 
tions are seen from Mombasa, Voi and Nairobi. The scaling" of the very 
summit has been accomplished only two or three times in the world's history. 

HOW THE GAME IS KILLED IN THE RESERVES. 

Near Tsavo, the first station beyond Voi, on both sides of the line com- 
mences the great game reserves of the British government, extending on the 
north for some 230 miles to the vicinity of the dizzy escarpment, or cliff, over 
which the line almost pitches into the grand Rift Valley. But this is taking 
time by the forelock indeed, since the Roosevelt train has but just pulled out 
of Voi and is speeding through the grounds in which the big game of the land 
find refuge and safety from human hunters. From human hunters, yes ; but 
the reserves are the slaughter pens of the small or peaceable game by the big 
and ferocious animals. Thousands of tiny soft-eyed antelope, mottled sleek- 
coated zebras and long-legged, long-necked ostriches feed over the plains of 
jungle grass, broken by hills and mounds and wander fearlessly close to the 
tracks. The stately giraffe is also seen abroad, with his sinuous neck moving 
around in the tree tops, like the animated trunk of a slender date palm. While 
they thus swarm in seemingly conscious security in these reserves, the lions, 
leopards, hyenas and jackals gather in the same district and there satisfy their 
blood-thirsty appetites. Seeming to fully realize its exemption from attack 
at the hands of human kind, game of every description is continually crossing 
the tracks. It may be a stately lion, or lion, lioness and cubs; a creeping, 
snaky-looking leopard; or even a large herd of elephants traveling from the 
bamboo forests of Mount Kilimanjaro to more northern feeding grounds. 
In the last case the train slackens its speed and may even be brought to a full 



54 



MOMBASA TO NAIROBI. 



stop. If smaller game is in the way— well, accidents will happen, and the 
average engineer on the Uganda railroad is like others of his brotherhood, 
anxious to be on time. Game is therefore frequently killed by locomotives, 
and it is said that its engineers, switchmen, station masters and even section 





Copyright 1909, by National Magazine. 

ZEBRA ATTACKED BY A UON. 

hands are prone to take greater chances for accidents, by running over ani- 
mals which interfere with them, than most railroad men in civilized countries. 
They claim that otherwise the Uganda railroad would always be a slow, unre- 
liable, unprogressive concern, and of no great use to either travelers or 
commerce. • 



MOMBASA TO NAIROBI. 55 

FROM VOI TO KAPITI PLAINS. 

The country north of the Uganda Railroad from Voi to Makindu, 
two hundred and fifty miles from Mombasa, is a jungle of plains broken 
by grassy hills, and is but preparatory to the fresher stretches of the 
Kapiti plains and the Athi district. From Tsavo to the Kapiti plains, a 
distance of one hundred and fifty miles, there 'is no white settlement. 
North of the track and beyond Kapiti the settlers are widely scattered 
through a belt of forty miles. 

Occasionally, on the trail, a safari will pass a native village, the 
chief of which usually attempts to hold up the head man for "hongu," 
which may be interpreted as either blackmail or presents — according to 
the manner of the chief or the temper of the head man. The Roosevelt 
party, and all other expeditions which expect to do much traveling 
afoot, laid in a good stock of trinkets in order to save vexatious conten- 
tions with these persistent chiefs, and also to be prepared to barter them 
for the agreeable articles of food as may often be obtained of the native 
villagers — articles both of native raising and compounding. Aromatic 
honey, sweet potatoes, sugar cane, pumpkins, Indian corn and the ever 
present banana, are not to be despised on a long "safari," when the party 
is a little short of provisions of its own. Better still, the white cook 
may pound the corn into a meal, fry it in butter and make a really appe- 
tizing cake. The natives themselves often mash and boil the green 
banana, which, although uninvitingly black and mushy to look at, is 
wholesome and pleasant to the taste. Mr. Roosevelt and his expedi- 
tion did not reject this sticky looking mess entirely — but, as a rule, they 
preferred food whose appearance was a better recommendation for 
its flavor. 

THE GREAT HUNT STARTED. 

Mr. Roosevelt and his party left Mombasa for Kapiti Plains at 2:30 
P. M., April 22nd, accompanied by Acting Governor Jackson, their im- 
mediate destination, after they left the railroad, being the splendid 
ranch of Sir Alfred Pease on the Athi River, in the midst of the beauti- 
ful Kapiti Plains. It was in the prime of the season for lion hunting. 
The big rains were well over; the plains were waving with short crisp 
grass, and such cool breezes were playing through it that the lions roved 
freely abroad, instead of seeking cover to escape the tropical sun. Al- 
though Sir Alfred's place is called the Theki ostrich farm, from the very 



56 MOMBASA TO NAIROBI. 

fact that it comprises one of the biggest and most scientific breeding 
grounds for these birds in East Africa, both it and the surrounding 
countr)' have the reputation of being unexcelled as a resort for the 
tawny-maned cat. Covered with short grass and devoid even of 
bushes, Kapiti plains are seamed with ravines, filled with weeds, reeds 
and thorns — with here and there pools of. sweet water, which are very 
magnets to the Kings either in the cool or hot seasons. Nature 
specially designated the "Theki ostrich farm" as the ideal launching 
grounds for the big hunt. 

But its generous proprietor and royal host had by no means left 
the success of this step of the expedition to nature. For weeks he 
had been arranging for the coming of Roosevelt, and had even built a 
beautiful substantial bungalow for the reception of the chief and his 
associates. It is needless to add that they gratefully occupied it for a 
short time before setting out on their exciting and successful hunt. The 
bungalow had been christened "Kitanga" ; it has a tin roof, with outer 
walls of gray granite blocks ; and its central living and dining room and 
four bedrooms are divided by walls of sun-dried brick. 

The first night of the Roosevelt expeditions in Africa was passed 
in tents near the railway station at Kapiti plains, and was April 22nd. 
The next morning the "Mombasa Standard" published a violent attack 
on Acting Governor Jackson and Mr. Roosevelt for alleged partiality 
for American journalists, who were said to be favored with passage on 
the special train to Kapiti Plains and English newspaper men excluded. 
The charges were found to be groundless, but created a little feeling of 
uneasiness for the time being. It was the intention to leave at once 
for the Pease ranch, but it was discovered that some of the baggage 
sent by the Smithsonian Institution had been left at Mombasa, and the 
expedition therefore pitched camp near the railroad station. Mr. Cun- 
ninghame sent back for the missing goods and Messrs. Roosevelt, Jack- 
son' Selous, et. al., proceeded to prepare for a preliminary small-game 
hunt. Colonel Roosevelt arose early the morning of the 23rd, and his 
high spirits continued even after he learned of the grilling he had re- 
ceived by the Mombasa newspaper. He proceeded at once to look 
over his outfit and consult Mr. Selous about hunting plans. Before 
he had started Kermit came in with a dead buck which he had shot, 
thus forestalling his strenuous father. With the assistance of Mr. Selous 
and a red handkerchief, Colonel Roosevelt then succeeded in bringing 




ROOSEVELT'S ARRIVAL AT KAPITI PLAINS, A STATION NEAR THE ESTATE OE 

SIR ALFRED PEASE. 57 



58 MOMBASA TO NAIROBI. 

down two wildbeests and a Thompson's gazelle. But the thoughts and 
eyes of the ex-president and present hunter of big game were turned 
toward Sir Alfred Pease's ostrich farm and its roaming lions. The 
next day the Roosevelt expedition broke camp and arrived at "Kitanga" 
in the midst of a tropical rain ; but aside from their comfortable hous- 
ing, the most complete arrangements had been made for their comfort, 
so that the next day found all in prime condition for the formal opening 
of the hunt. Another day passed, and the ex-president had only a 
Grant's gazelle and a couple of bucks to his credit, although there were 
the unmistakable roarings and other evidences that lions were abroad 
in the country around. The next morning the caravan proceeded toward 
the Mau hills where its camp was pitched. Another day, with only small 
game bagged ; but great work accomplished by Kermit's camera and 
by Messrs. Loring and Heller in the cause of science. Mr. Selous ac- 
companied the ex-president on his first lion hunt and killing. The 
native beaters first discovered three lions, and while two bounded off 
into the high grass the third charged, and was shot in the air by Colonel 
Roosevelt. The next hunt called for more patience in tracking his 
lordship, the lion evidently taking to the river bed. But the beast was 
finally located and driven out into the open by the beaters, and was 
shot through the heart by the American as the animal was making one 
of those famous whirlwind charges described as "the swiftest thing 
on earth." Following the advice of Cunninghame, Selous, Pease and 
other experienced lion hunters, Mr. Roosevelt had been careful to have 
his pony led some distance behind, as the latter is apt to make some 
noise, such as snorting or stamping, to alarm the lion. Another reason 
for this rule : The lion is very fond of horse meat of every description, 
the sight of a sleek zebra or a fat Somali pony often inviting him to a 
furious attack when otherwise he would give his followers a wide berth. 
Before the sun h^d set on this 30th day of April, 1909, Mr. Roosevelt's 
good American rifle had brought three lions to earth, and each on -the 
first shot, while Kermit had proved his relationship by killing one of 
the big beasts. Both father and son were jubilant as their first lion hunt 
had exceeded all expectations. All the lions were of normal size and 
after the natives had dragged them together in the grass they executed 
the usual picturesque and weird dances around the trophies. It is said 
that Sir Alfred Pease made an effective sketch of Mr. Roosevelt as he 
was shooting his first lion over the shoulder of a native gunbearer, at 



! 



MOMBASA TO NAIROBI. 59 

a distance of sixty yards. Two days after the red letter 30tlj of April 
he bagged another lion at Wami, near Kapiti Plains, and upon this 
occasion his quick work at close range perhaps saved the lives of some 
of his mounted escort who were being charged by the infuriated beast. 
It is certain, with all the safeguards thrown around him, that he gave 
repeated instances, during the first week of the real hunt, of wonderful 
nerve, and that he aroused general admiration at his accurate marks- 
manship. 

The Roosevelt party remained on the great Pease ranch for about 
three weeks, during which period the Colonel killed four lions, two 
rhinos, two giraffes, two wildbeests and one Thompson's gazelle, while 
Kermit bagged two lions, one cheetah, one giraffe and one wildbeest. 
While all the members of the expedition were bitten by ticks, none 
developed the dreaded fever. But several cases of smallpox were dis- 
covered among the porters. Otherwise, all was serene until the ex- 
pedition commenced temporarily to scatter. Mr. Roosevelt and his 
son prepared to hunt another kind of game on the famous Juja ranch 
of W. N. McMillan, east of Nairobi. There were especially sought 
the impalla, buffalo, wart hog and waterbuck, and the Roosevelts were 
accompanied to the McMillan grounds by P. H. Percival, brother of 
Major Percival, one of the assistant game wardens, and Clifford Hill, 
who was once associated with the Pease ostrich farm and now, with 
his cousin, conducts one of his own. They are both great lion hunters 
as well as ostrich breeders ; are English colonists who have never seen 
England ; bred in South Africa ; ex-soldiers of the Boer war and 
emigrants to East Africa. 

FROM KAPITI PLAINS TO NAIROBI. 

The country from Kapiti plains to Nairobi is a gradual melting into 
the more rolling and less seamed surface of the Athi river district. It 
is the approach to the region of fine plantations and the threshold of 
those wonderful grounds so interesting and thrilling both to the 
scientists and sportsmen of the Roosevelt party. Toward the east and 
the north, the land is simply a vast spill-over for the teeming game 
reserves to the south. 

At this stage of the Roosevelt expedition many rare birds as well 
as fine zoological specimens had been obtained for the Smithsonian 
Institution, and while they are being prepared for shipment to the 



60 MOMBASA TO NAIROBI. 

United States, it is a good opportunity to briefly note the special and 
Jess known victims of the Roosevelt rifles and shotguns; also to describe 
one of the most enterprising and modern cities of Africa, which for 
several months, was to be the nucleus of the expedition. The big game 
country in all its glory was yet to be entered beyond Nairobi, and the 
Kings of beasts which make it their home will be treated in their logical 
order. The most interesting smaller game bagged by the party up to 
this point, were the wildbeest, impalla, water buck, Thompson's and 
Grant's gazelles and the wart hog. 

The species of wildbeest bagged bv the Roosevelt expedition is the 
white-bearded gnu, the only kind now common to East Africa. Its 
general appearance is familiar. If the genus is ever exterminated, the 
final undoing of the beast can be traced to its inordinate curiosity, which 
it shares in common with the antelope and gazelle ; but the trait is most 
abnormally developed in the wildbeest. The animals go in herds of from 
twenty to fifty, and as they prefer such open, sunny ground as the 
Kapiti and Athi plains, they stand out more ponderous than they really 
are, hunters not infrequently mistaking them for fhinos at a distance. 
The bulls exhibit the same fury toward red as the domesticated article 
and although they are stupid looking beasts, as they stand motionless in 
the open plain with the hot sun shining down on them, they are really 
so alert that other species of game will often impress an old bull who 
has no herd of his own kind to do sentry duty. When a herd of wild- 
beests is disturbed, the animals usually go off at a lumbering gallop 
which takes them over the ground at a pace which usually puts the 
best horse to shame. When in motion their tails rapidly vibrate, which 
is also a peculiarity of the galloping giraffe. 

The impalla and water buck, of which both Mr. Roosevelt and 
Kermit obtained some fine specimens, are among the most graceful of 
African antelopes. They are generally found together — the impalla 
with slim bodies of bright red with beautiful spreading horns, and the 
water buck with long shaggy hair of a less pronounced red, with a 
bolder sweep of the horns. The old African hunters who were with 
Mr. Roosevelt were well aware that the impalla and water buck have 
been classed as the most regular in their habits of all known animals. 
In this particular they give an exhibition of instinct which is among 
the most remarkable in the animal world. "For instance," says one 
of the hunters, "on the Tana River after an early but short morning shoot, 



MOMBASA TO NAIROBI. 61 

having had breakfast we used to go to a high bank opposite a favorite 
drinking place for all sorts of game, to where a screen of thin grass had 
been erected to take photographs from behind. After we had found out 
their habits, we timed ourselves to be there roughly at 10:15 A. M. 
The impalla always arrived first, at from 10:30 to 10:40, and immedi- 
ately after they had cleared out the water buck turned up at from 10:50 
to 11 :30, when they were all done. Both were punctual to ten minutes 
or so, if the wind was right and they had not been disturbed. ' 

One of the first trophies of the chase at Kapiti Plains was a pretty 
little Thompson's gazelle, with its ringed, almost straight horns smoothly 
tipped, sandy-colored fur and black nose. A distinct black band also 
divides the white of the belly from the sandy red of the back. It is popu- 
larly known as "Tommy" and roams widely over East Africa. A pecu- 
liarity of this species is that there seems to be no rule about the carry- 
ing of horns. Sometimes the females carry them ; sometimes not ; and 
they are seen .with and without, in the same herd. 

Grant's gazelle differs from Thompson's in much the same way that 
the water buck differs from the impalla ; the one is built for strength, 
the other for speed — although both are graceful. The length and thick- 
ness and splendid spread of the male horns (sometimes more than thirty 
inches), which characterize Grant's gazelle among all its species, are the 
admiration of all animal lovers. It is therefore said that one of Mr. 
Roosevelt's very few disappointments, in the early stages of the expe- 
dition, was the taking of a Thompson's instead of a Grant's gazelle; 
but the rarer and more remarkable animal was brought to his game bag 
later. 

CHICAGO OF EAST AFRICA. 

Nairobi, with its back against the rising forests of Kikuyu and its 
feet planted in the Athi plains, is an epitome of New Africa and the Chi- 
cago of the British East African protectorate. Like the Chicago of the 
United States it is an interior city of diverse population — say one thou- 
sand Europeans, three thousand Indians and fourteen thousand natives 
— and like the American metropolis is the center of railroad, telegraphic, 
commercial, political and social activities. The city is seen through many 
glasses of many colors. Doubtless its site is on low ground in com- 
parison with the country to the north, but it is 5,450 feet above sea level 
and the Europeans, who observe sanitary laws, have suffered no serious 
epidemic. The only one which has ever threatened was the bubonic 



62 MOMBASA TO NAIROBI. 

plague, which was brought in 1902 by the Indian coolies employed on 
the Uganda Railroad. No European was ever attacked by it and out of 
the sixty-three cases among the Indians only nineteen proved fatal. 
Their filthy huts and crowded barracks were then razed, and since then 
Nairobi has been a healthful city even for the colored citizens. 

Nairobi was started as the railroad center of the Uganda line and 
that is still its strong feature, from a business and industrial standpoint. 
The station and offices are large and orderly and the shops are filled 
with all the modern machinery and tools for repairing the cars and 
engines of the road. A large number both of the native blacks and 
Indians are employed in the iron works, and many of them have become 
what even Europeans concede to be skilled mechanics. The Africans, 
even before the advent of the railroad, had learned to turn out from the 
most primitive furnaces and forges, and with the crudest tools, weapons 
and ornaments of iron which evinced great natural aptitude; and since 
the advent of modern instructors and devices they have made remark- 
able progress. After the railroad buildings come the government build- 
ings, hospitals and military barracks in point of interest. Nairobi is 
the headquarters of a brigade of the King's African Rifles, and the build- 
ings mentioned occupy the higher ground to the north of the city proper. 
Within Nairobi are modern hotels, good stores and some handsome 
bungalows, but the majority of residences are one-story houses with tin 
roofs. The city is in intimate telegraphic or telephonic connection with 
the scattered forts or posts throughout the protectorate, as well as with 
the ranches all along the line of the railroad from Kapiti Plains to Port 
Florence ; and, besides being military, railroad and telegraphic headquar- 
ters, is the central point for the administration of the East African Pro- 
tectorate police. Politicians swarm; officials — railroad, military, police 
— are everywhere ; in fact the cynic says that "every white man in 
Nairobi is a politician, and generally the leader of a party." Autos 
sweep through the streets ; golf, cricket and tennis are played on well 
kept swards by English boys and girls, and lawn parties are given under 
the glare of electric lights, the power for which is generated from a 
dammed stream of the Athi River several miles away. At the same time 
so close is wild Africa that the sweet music of the garden orchestra may 
mingle with a lion's roar, or an electric light may glitter in the eyes of 
a jackal. Nairobi also has its race weeks and regular dances for the 
amusement of the town people, the militia and visitors. 




ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS 



Eastward from. Nairobi, between the Athi and Tana rivers and for 
miles around Mount Kenia, is the great region which has well been termed 
the paradise of hunters for big game. It is a country so varied in surface 
and soil — presenting jungles, dry plains, grassy hills, rocky steeps, wooded 
streams — that no' variety of famous game is without a home and retreat. 
Even the monkeys have their inaccessible grounds in the region of Mount 
Kenia. 



NAIROBI. AS THE GREAT OUTFITTING POINT. 

Naturally, Nairobi is the central point for the final organization and out- 
fitting of the hunting expeditions, or caravan parties (safari), and in the 
busy season (say from December to March) it is nothing unusual to see two 
or three starting out daily. The caravans are also arriving from the East and 
Southeast, some even overhauling the train and obtaining more modern trans- 
port than afoot, the porters loaded down with antelope meat, elephant tusks, 
lion skins, and other trophies of the chase. On the same train which pulls 
into Nairobi may be a refrigerator car packed with ice, fresh sea fish and 
foreign fruits and vegetables. These are probably consigned to some Euro- 
pean or Hindu merchant — most likely the latter — who will easily dispose of 
his stock to the hotels, the thousand or more English, German and American 
residents, or the aristocratic and, at the same time, democratic plantation 

owners to the East. 

63 



64 



ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 



HOSPITABLE PLANTERS OF THE HUNTERS' PARADISE. 

To these great estates, some of them many thousand acres in extent, good 
roads lead across country from the railroads, some hundred miles in all direc- 
tions. Not only does this new landed aristocracy make some attempt at rais- 




Copyright 1909, by 
Underwood & Underwood. 



WATERFALL — TANA RIVER DISTRICT. 



ing potatoes and European fruits and vegetables, but strongly corraled cattle 
as well, and it has been prophesied that, with the gradual moulding of the 
natives into industrious and skilled agriculturists this region and other sec- 
tions to the Northwest will become great producers of cotton. The frontier 



ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 



65 



post of British civilization northeast from Nairobi, and the virtual termination 
of this hunters' paradise, is Fort Hall, on the Tana river, nearly opposite 
Mount Kenia and about ninety miles from the railroad. It is a supply station 
for the hunters of the region, an emblem also of British authority, and is the 
terminus, of the telegraphic an~d telephonic system, which centers at Nairobi. 
Excluding the African game from the picture and some other features of the 
landscape, one might well imagine that he was among well-to-do Western 
farmers of the United States. But as the East African host arises from a 




HIPPOPOTAMI BASKING IN THE SUN. 



good dinner adapted to English, German or American taste, takes polite leave 
of My Lady, adjourns .to the smoking room, leisurely finishes a Havana, takes 
his rifle from the walls, hands another to his guest, and then adjourns to the 
broad veranda to see if any lions, leopards or wildebeests are in sight — it is 
then quite certain that we are in New Africa. 

Wise man that he was, Theodore Roosevelt chose such agreeable and 
favorable surroundings as these to extend his knowledge of the wild beasts 
of the world, and enjoy the excitement and the healthful exercise of the chase. 



66 



ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 



The intimation is not to be conveyed for a moment that he was any parlor 
hunter. But who would refuse the friendship and hospitality of such men as 




Copyright 1909, by Underwood & Underwood. 

CURING STRIPS OF ANTELOPE MEAT AFTER A HUNT. 

Lieutenant E. W. Jackson, in charge of the British game reserves, and acting 
governor of the protectorate; of Sir Alfred Pease, whose plantation is near 
Mackakos and the Athi river, about thirty miles southeast of Nairobi; or of 



ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 67 

William N. McMillan, of St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America? 
The last named, one of the expert hunters of Africa, is proprietor of a plan- 
tation of 20,000 acres in the great Athi plains, twenty-two miles east of 
Nairobi, his vast estate of big game being modestly called Juja Farm. All of 
these gallant landlords, with their ladies and others? were proud to entertain 
the ex-President and point his party in the right directions for game, and, 
of all men, Theodore Roosevelt was the most ready to be thoroughly pleased 
with their kindness and helpfulness. Mr. McMillan is the special patron 
(saint) of the American sportsman, and, as one of his guests has put the 
matter : "At the African home of my American host, all East African game 
is abundant except rhinoceros and elephant, sable, roan antelope and oryx; 
but the last are to be had by a journey of from two to five days (to the Mount 
Kenia region). Hundreds of game animals are nearly always in sight from 
the veranda of the house. I have lighted a cigarette in my room at daylight, 
gone forth and killed a big wildebeest bull before the cigarette was con- 
sumed. In fact, the 20,000 acres of Juja Farm so* swarm with game after 
the rains that before the dry season is half over the grass is eaten as short as 
on an overcrowded cattle range; and all from the overflow of the great 
game reserves north and south of us. Notwithstanding their great numbers, 
it takes marksmanship to get game on the Athi plains ; for they are bare of 
cover and it is unusual to get a shot at anything except lion or hippopotamus 
short of from three to six hundred yards." Further east toward and beyond 
the Tana rivers and around Mount Kenia are to be found the other kinds of 
game which were hunted and shot by the Roosevelt party — the elephant, dur- 
ing the dry season in the dense mountain thickets and, during the rains, in 
the bush and long grass country; hippopotami in the rivers in the daytime, 
or along the banks from dusk to morning; rhinoceros in every unexpected 
place; antelope generally on the open plains; little dik-dik, leaping through 
the long grass ; leopards everywhere, but as elusive as snakes ; reedbuck in the 
scrub of steep rocky hills ; lions prowling wherever their game abounds, seek- 
ing especially the zebra and all the equine kind; and the buffalo, in dark 
swamps and forests, or concealed in high elephant grass. With these de- 
scriptions, the reader should be able to form a mind picture of the hunting 
grounds over which Roosevelt ranged for several months, with the sportsmen 
and naturalists of his party, under the general and skillful guidance of Mr. 
Cunninghame.' At this point in the narrative it seems desirable to describe, 
somewhat in detail, the beautiful and surprising gems of landscape to be seen 
in the Mount Kenia region, the eastern limits of the Roosevelt hunt. 



68 ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 

BETWEEN NAIROBI AND FORT HALL. 

A good road for carriages, wagons or automobiles — and you see 
them all — runs from Nairobi, via Fort Hall and Embo, to the wonder- 
ful region of which Mount Kenia is the center. Embo is twenty-eight 
miles from Fort Hall and is the most distant military post which the 
British have established in that direction. Fort Hall is nearly opposite 
Mount Kenia, south of the Tana River, and Embo lies to the southeast 
of that wonderful dome of nature. 

The road which takes one to these outposts passes through a varied 
country, often wild and seamed with gorges in its first stages, but gen- 
erally fertile and well watered by various tributaries of the Athi and 
Tana rivers. The spacious colonial estates, or ranches, are scattered 
along the route for thirty or forty miles from Nairobi. One farm may 
grow coffee — which is such a luxuriant crop — and on the next estate 
may be herded together, by a native child or full-grown, a miscellaneous 
but placid assortment of ostriches, sheep and cattle. A complete dairy 
farm is liable to be in operation in the vicinity ; also a truck garden pro- 
ducing sweet potatoes, Indian corn, beans and other vegetables may 
adjoin it. At one place is to be found a plucky English family grap- 
pling with a ten-thousand acre farm, their neighbor an old Boer, who, 
after_ having treked the length of Africa to avoid the British flag, now 
stolidly smokes his pipe by his grass house, tends to his small herd of 
indifferent looking cattle ; in his way, is hospitable to his British co- 
workers, and eager enough to show the tourist what he knows about 
the whereabouts of lions. 

About half a day's safari from Fort Hall, where the Chania and Thika 
rivers effect a juncture with the main stream of the Tana, is a beautiful 
meadowy tract within sight and hearing of fine plunging waterfalls, and 
the locality is one of the favorite camping grounds for lion hunters. It 
is an agreeable programme, after indulging in the sport the first half of 
the day, to spend the afternoon in a ride to Fort Hall, through a green, 
comparatively smooth and pleasant country. There will be found the 
commissioner's house, with a ditch around it, a jail, an Indian bazaar 
and a few houses for the militia and police. If the visitor is fortunate, 
he will arrive while a great gathering of Kikuku chiefs, warriors and 
women is loudly discussing the dance of the following morning. He 
will then accept the commissioner's invitation to stay over night. In the 




Copyright 1909, by Underwood & Underwood. 

WARRIORS, WOMEN, AND CHILDREN, AT FORT HALL WAITING TO GREET THE GREAT AMERICAN, 

AND PARADE AND DANCE IN HIS HONOR. 69 



70 ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 

morning, long before daylight, the whole space in front of the fort is 
packed with almost naked warriors, while the beating of drums, the 
blowing of horns and the chanting of yokes in a crude rhythm fully 
awakes all would-be sight seers to the coming war dance. And when 
the "indaba" does begin, later in the morning, it is a sight to be remem- 
bered. The pack of plumed, squirming, gyrating, yelling warriors, their 
hair and chocolate colored bodies smeared with red earth and glistening 
with the slimy juice of the castor oil plant ; legs and arms encircled with 
twisted wire or heavier iron ornaments ; leopard skins waving from their 
shoulders, and their broad cowhide or rhinoceros shields, painted with 
tribal emblems, and long spears clashing together, as particular chiefs 
advance and retreat in the dance, or as gifts of live sheep and bulls are 
brought forward into the arena — these are the weird features of the exhi- 
bition. The laughable side of the picture is the obvious fondness of the 
African warrior for any European article of clothing, which he proudly 
parades before his people — an old pair of trousers, a torn jacket,- 
a weather-stained uniform, a ragged umbrella or battered helmet. Mix- 
ing such articles as. these with their time-honored ostrich plumes, capes 
of leopard skin, belts of monkey fur and metal anklets and bracelets, is a 
characteristic but still ludicrous mingling of New and Old Africa. 

ON TO THE EXTREME EASTERN POST. 

The road to Embo is through a beautiful country well cultivated by 
the natives, and the thoroughfare itself is maintained by them (under 
the supervision of the district commissioner) in such good shape that a 
bicycle could take to it without fear of a puncture. The Tana is crossed 
by a ferry, which travels along a rope impelled by the current of the 
river. This convenience is only for such human kind as Colonel Roose- 
velt and his party; their ponies have to swim the sixty yards of foaming 
water, reddened by washings from the soil. From the further bank is 
obtained a noble view of Mount Kenia, gradually rising from its great 
base to an altitude little short of Kilimanjaro. All along the road smil- 
ing, peaceable natives meet the traveler with extended hand — in the 
other a spear or sword — and the only real danger to be feared is the mad, 
sudden and unaccountable charge of some hidden buffalo. Embo is at 
length reached. It consists of a one-story, three-roomed stone house 
containing quarters for the commissioner and military officer, as well 



ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 71 

as a jail ; two Indian bazaars built of corrugated iron, and several rows 
of grass huts for the 150 soldiers and police on duty. Embo stands 
for the authority which keeps in subjection 75,000 natives, most of them 
little beyond savagery. Its terrible jail consists of a tiny room, seldom 
occupied by a prisoner except as a comfortable sleeping place. Now 
that the native tribes are pacified the soldiers have little to do, while the 
police are mainly concerned with the enforcement of the game laws; The 
civil authorities stationed at Embo and Fort Hall have under their eyes 
the Mount Kenia region, which is wonderful both for its beauties as well 
as zoological variety. 

A BABOON'S PARADISE. 

Perhaps the first noteworthy feature of the approach to Mount Kenia 
is the bright colors of the flowers — blue, yellow, pink and crimson. After 
a rain the velts are covered with these little beauties, which protest 
against the general charge that an East African landscape is almost 
colorless. As the blue-wooded ridges skirting the mountain unfold in 
detail, the stunted jumper appears and higher still the wild olive grows 
along the river banks. Still miles away from the actual base of Kenia, 
approaching from the northwest, the traveler enters a tract which has 
never been better described than in the following: "The level country 
is thickly sown for twenty-five miles with great masses of red granite, 
outcroppings of the same formation. A Celt would say that the devil 
or the giants had been at war or play in the old days, and that these 
rocks were the mighty sling-stones they had hurled from the mountains 
at each other.* Some of them are one hundred feet high, some nearer 
four hundred feet ; all are imposing. Round their rocky bases the grass 
grows so smooth and fresh it might be a carefully tended lawn. Some- 
times the dust of the great stones must have added a richness to the 
soil; and the sward, smooth still, has buried their broad bases for some 
feet under its carpet. Then the prairie falls away from one, and rises 
gently towards the next in curves and dips of green. They are half a 
mile apart, or only fifty yards, as it may be. Some rise sheer and steep 
with no crack or crevice for bush or vine. On some dwarfed wild fig 
'trees climb and cling. All are of a rich red granite, and the sides and 
crowns shine and glisten gloriously in the light of the rising and set- 
ting sun. In the highest and most inaccessible, great troops of little 



72 ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 

gray monkeys have found the safest of hiding-places and of homes. 
There no climbing serval, cat or leopard can do them harm, and up and 
down the sheer sides of the cliffs they race and play — they look just like 
flies walking on the ceiling; not like animals at all. 

"As I got nearer still to the densely wooded country that lies before 
me, the masses of rock gradually soften their outline and merge them- 
selves in higher and more regular hills and ridges, always covered with 
greenery, that rise up and up till they meet the great flanks of Kenia. 
The sun was now high in the heaven — yet the vapors still clung among 
these purple-blue foothills. In other lands you see the clouds rise up 
slowly, steadily from the woodland. Here sometimes they have a way 
of rising all their own — the breeze bids them be going, but they linger 
and cling as it were to their home of the night that is over." 

GREAT HUNTING GROUNDS OF LAIKIPIA PLAINS. 

The above is from the pen of Dr. W. S. Rainsford, a former New 
York clergyman, who has tracked and killed big game all over the 
grounds covered by the Roosevelt expedition, from Mount Elgon, above 
Lake Victoria Nyanza, to the Mount Kenia region. In one day's 
approach to that glorious mountain, through various tracts of beauties 
and surprises, he records a sudden stumbling on two rhinos among the 
bush; in his circuit to avoid them, running into an ostrich family hid- 
den in a gully ; a striking view of seven giraffes twining their necks and 
feeding among the topmost boughs of a thorn tree; meeting herds of 
oryx on the plains, and footprints of lions, elephants and antelopes cross- 
ing his path in all directions ; and the noiseless crawling of a huge croco- 
dile from a river sand bank into the yellow stream. Finally comes a 
stretch of curving, green meadows pressing up to the mountain forests 
of Mount Kenia. Dense as these are, with giant bamboo more than 
sixty feet in height, they have been penetrated to the bare uplands, ten 
thousand feet above. Herds of elephant and buffalo are common in 
these almost untrodden mountain solitudes; but the chosen home of 
the rhinoceros is along the dry and barren slopes of the Guaso Nyiro 
River, covered with cactus growths. 

In these terrible cactus jungles of the Laikipia Plains have occurred 
some of the most narrow escapes, and also the most awful deaths, of 
rhinoceros hunters. Further away from the river are favorite grounds 



. » ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 73 

for various kinds of antelope and fairly out on the veldt, between the 
wooded hills, and the plains which stretch to Mount Kenia is found 
great numbers of the noble African antelope known as the oryx. His 
special haunt is a few miles up the Guaso Nyiro River, above its junc- 




Copyright 1909, by Underwood & Underwood. 

HEADWATERS OF GUASO NYIRO — THE HUNTER'S PARADISE. 

ture with the Guaso Narak and among the red granite kopjes which rise 
from the Laikipia Plains. This is a lion country also; and it is no 
unusual sight to see a dead king of beasts impaled on the long sharp 
horns of the oryx, which also lies dead beside his victim. Further, the 
headwaters of the Guaro Nyiro River are said to embrace one of the 
greatest buffalo grounds in East Africa. 



74 ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 

WHERE TO FIND THE COLOBUS MONKEY. 

In this secluded region of clear sweet water, great juniper trees, 
stately ferns and wide-spreading chestnuts, the chattering parrots and 
monkeys also hold high carnival. This special land of canyons and 
botanic luxuriance has been selected by the shy and pretty colobus 
monkey as his own. The region around Kijabe, where the Roosevelt 
hunters shot their first specimens of this species, is virtually deserted in 
comparison with the tropical tangles around the headwaters of the Guaso 
Nyiro. In the early morning the cry of the colobus sounds through 
these dense woodlands, like the rapid grinding of a coffee mill. There 
he sits on a high branch of a juniper so as to be well in the sun, drying 
his fine coat of white and black and his long snowy tail, after his night's 
sleep in the dewy depths of the woods. It seems a pity to end his little 
life, even for the sake of the Smithsonian Institution, or in the world- 
wide interest of natural history. 

TRACKING THE BIG GAME. 

The true modern hunter finds his greatest excitement in the "chase," 
however great his satisfaction may be in overtaking the big game and 
bringing it to earth ; and in skilful tracking, although the native's services 
are usually brought into use, the white hunter is often able to give away 
points and still beat the black, man at the game he has been playing for 
generations. With all his wonderful keenness of the senses, in which 
he runs so close a race with the big game itself, the black tracker lacks 
the general intelligence of the white to draw the correct conclusion from 
what he sees, hears and smells. But by using the black hunter as his 
tool, his extra hand, the white sportsman gets a combination which lion, 
rhino, buffalo, hippo, wildbeest or antelope find hard to beat. This 
was the union which made the Roosevelt expedition so effective. 

In running down their big game the old hunters in the party, such 
as Selous and Cunninghame, were able to distinguish the animals from 
its spoor or track, as readily as the best natives in the party. They had 
not only seen them in many countries, and on all kinds of soil, but had 
even studied their forms in dozens of books illustrated with reproduced 
photographs. Each native could judge only from his limited experience. 
First, the white hunter realizes that he should learn to distinguish the 
track of a full-grown bull of any species, as the game laws so jealously 



ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 75 

guard the female and her young. Usually the tracks of the female are 
smaller, while those of the young have an unformed appearance. It 
is also remembered by the expert that the same spoor will look differ- 
ently on hard or soft ground, clayey or sandy soil, and according to the 
action of the animal when he leaves his tracks — whether he is walking, 
trotting or galloping. If the ground is very gritty, the shallow impress 
left by the big game is invisible when viewed from above, although it 
may be seen obliquely several yards away. The hunter governs him- 
self accordingly when he comes across this kind of soil. If the ground 
is very rocky, no actual track may be visible, but the hunter is then on 
the lookout for pebbles or stones overturned, exposing the earthy side, 
with the weather-beaten side down ; or vegetation rubbed off the rocks, 
bruised or even bent. There is another form of spoor occurring on hard, 
dry soil, sometimes made by a buck, but usually by a lion, rhino and the 
softer footed animals ; that is a slight brushing of the ground with the 
pad, dislodging a little dust and giving the soil a somewhat lighter color 
than that surrounding it. 

Then there is the grassy country. If the grass is short and green, it 
is not difficult to trace the progress of the animal by the bruised appear- 
ance of the track. The line of drooping blades shows the direction the 
animal has taken and a little patience will be rewarded by some bare soil 
with a distinct track. Of all varieties of grass country the most trying 
for the trackers is that covered by the huge elephant grass, as it is usually 
trampled in well beaten paths by rhino, buffalo and elephant. As the 
big game has continually to be followed over such ground, the plan of 
the hunter is to follow a well-defined run, and whenever a branch path 
leads away follow it in the hope of discovering some tracks on other 
spoor which will point to the nature of the game and the comparative 
time of his passage. Sometimes by lifting the thick layers of dead grass 
the tender shoots beneath will be found freshly bruised, yielding at least 
a portion of the information sought. 

Returning to the tracks of the big game hunted and killed by Roose- 
velt and his party, it may be stated in general terms that the spoor of the 
lion's forefoot, as of all cat-like animals, is rounded and wider than that 
of the hindfoot. It is larger than that of the leopard, and the track of 
the male is considerably larger than that of the female. Claw marks do 
not show unless the animal is about to spring, and then they cut deeply 
into the ground, tearing up earth and grass. 



76 



ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 



The tracks of the elephant are considerably larger than those of the 
rhino and hippo, and, unlike these, hardly show any toe marks, except 
a faint impress of the two front ones. When stampeding these two toes 
show a deeper impression, especially in the forefeet. With both ele- 
phant and buck the hind track is smaller and more oblong than the fore. 
The tracks of the rhino and hippo are much the same size, but when 
seen at all clearly may be readily distinguished; as the former has three 
broad toes which usually leave a firm impress, while the hippo has four 




AN OLD ELEPHANT KILLED NEAR MT. ELGON. 

The length of tusks indicate that he was at least 150 years old. 

pointed toes with nails. The buffalo leaves a track not unlike that of 
cattle, but much larger. It is often confused with that of the elafid ; that 
is, the track of a full grown bull eland is sometimes hard to distinguish 
from that of a small buffalo. But buffalo leave a cleaner-cut spoor than 
the eland's, walk flatter footed and, moreover, leave another mark of 
their identity which is unmistakable. The droppings of the buffalo not 
only resemble those of cattle on a large scale, but the second day after 
they are deposited the maggot of the Mputsi fly appear in the dung. 






ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 



77 



This fly lays its eggs in no other clung than that of cattle. Another 
habit of the rhino, also tells the hunter that he is not following the hippo, 
elephant or other big game. The rhino does not scatter his droppings 
along his route, but after depositing them in one place for a time returns, 
scatters the pile and scratches earth over it. 

Having learned to recognize the tracks of the fore and hind feet of 
the big game, the next thing to be considered is the manner of placing 
them while in motion. In the case of the buck, while walking the hind 
foot is in front of the forefoot; on a jog, on top or slightly behind, and 




Copyright 1909, by 
Underwood & Underwood. 



SKINNING AN ELAND ANTELOPE. 



while on a gallop the hoofs are always spread out. The lengths of strides 
of the different animals at their different paces have also to be learned; 
and putting various indications together, the hunter will be able to form 
a tolerably correct conclusion as to the distance he will be obliged to 
travel before overtaking his game. 

Sometimes when all signs of tracks and droppings are insufficient, 
the browsings of the big beasts leave their tell-tale. Suppose the hunter 
in a tangled country of elephant grass, such as abounds in the Mount 
Kenia region, should find his path crossed and recrossed with tracks of 



78' ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 

elephants, rhinos, eland and other big game. He is after one kind, not 
all. His surest plan to get on the track of his particular game is to 
closely note the browsing indications. A branch torn from a thorn tree, 
or a bit of chewed thorn dropped on the ground shows that he is in the 
wake of a rhino, while a long strip of bark torn from the top of a tree 
would mean elephant. As he walks along the latter is in the habit of 
gathering young shoots with his trunk and after eating the leaves, 
throwing little bundles of stalks on either side of the pathway. The 
eland seems careless and destructive, tearing off great branches from 
the trees, stripping off the bark and scattering everything right and left. 
The condition of the browsings left behind also affords the tracker some 
of his surest indications as to the comparative time which has elapsed 
since the game was on the ground. The sap at the break of a limb; the 
bruise on the grass or bush; the rubbings of the buck's horns against 
the tree ; the condition of the droppings — a dozen and one signs will tell 
the hunter whether he is on a comparatively fresh track. Then, with 
an intimate knowledge of the habits of the beast — especially his regular 
times of going to water and his characteristic conduct when he knows 
that he is stalked — and the hunter will eventually run down his game. 
The next desideratum is to keep cool, and patiently wait for an oppor- 
tunity to get in the vital shot. 

THE PROMISING DEATH SHOTS. 

All big game hunters now agree that the brain shot is the proper one 
for the elephant. But it is not often attempted, from the fact that the 
brain is very small in comparison with the bony structure around it. 
When the sportsman accurately knows the position of the brain — that 
it is fairly low and well back — he takes the ear orifice and the eye as 
indexes of the general line of his shot. If he gets a broadside position, 
he aims for a spot about two inches forward of the ear hole in a line 
with the eye. A direct frontal shot is avoided as too uncertain. A 
bullet at the back of the ear, when the elephant's head is turned away 
from the hunter is usually deadly. The deadliest shot, however, is con- 
sidered the raking one, by which the bullet is placed at the back of the 
neck. The heart lies on the right side of the body; but neither the heart 
nor the lung shot is to be compared with the brain shot. In fact, unless 
both lungs are pierced the elephant often gets away. 



ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 



79 



The most deadly shot for the rhino is also that in the brain, with a 
bullet placed in the center of the neck as a good second. In following a 
wounded rhino he is always found with head high up, waiting for a 
charge, in which case a raking shot through the shoulder generally 
sounds his death knell. As the hippo is generally found in the water, 
shots at the head must be the rule; and his most certain death is to be 
encompassed by taking him when his head is turned away and planting 
-the bullet on an imaginary line drawn across the base of his ears. In 




Copyright 1909, by 
Underwood & Underwood. 



TROPHIES OF THE HUNT. 



the case of buffalo — one of the hardest to kill in the list and among the 
dangerous when wounded — there is no more vital point to endeavor to 
reach than the point of the shoulder if the beast is broadside ; if facing, 
with head up, the base of the neck ; if quarter facing, the side of the neck, 
so the bullet will rake through the body to the opposite shoulder. The 
dum-dum, expanding bullet is nearly always used for this ferocious brute. 
But, taken all into consideration, the lion is really the most dangerous 
of the big game, as in proportion to the number killed he has caused 



80 ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 

the greatest fatality among hunters. Particular care is therefore exer- 
cised in waiting for the opportunity to drive home the most fatal shot. 
The point of the shoulder and the base of the neck are the localities to 
be aimed for. Most of the fatal accidents have occurred when follow- 
ing a wounded lion into grass. As to buck, the best spot to aim at is 
the shoulder, for if the heart is not struck the lungs may be, or the arteries 
around the heart damaged, or the shoulders so shattered that the animal 
will be unable to run. If facing, the hunter generally tries for the base 
of the neck, so that the bullet will rake the vital organs from front to 
rear. Some of the buck are the most difficult to kill in the whole ani- 
mal kingdonij not only getting away with perforated lungs and shat- 
tered limbs, but with their very entrails dragging on the ground. The 
first shot is therefore the all-important one — in the case of the bigger 
game because the life of the hunter may depend upon it, and of such as 
the buck, because the game may escape the hunter. 

CHARMS OF THE LION CHASE. 

First, see your lion. The charms of the lion chase consist largely in 
pitting human wit against animal instinct, and getting the beast in such 
a position that he must either, stand or run. With all the uncertainties 
of his conduct, the general policy of the lion is to mind his own business 
and especially to avoid trouble with man. Still, he sustains his reputa- 
tion of being the most wise and uncertain of the big carnivora. He will 
even go so far as to retire meekly from a freshly killed buffalo or zebra 
upon the approach of the hunter ; but if the sportsman be persistent, and 
the beast makes a stand, it means a fight to the death. But often a 
hunter may search for days without even getting a sight of His King- 
ship, even though his spoor may be fresh and his killings on all sides. 
One expert states that during his six months in British East Africa he 
spent thirty days looking for lions in a country where they were thick 
about his camp every night, often seeking entry to the tents, and twice 
making kills within a few yards of where the safari slept. 

It is generally considered that the safest lion shooting is on foot and 
the most favorable ground a naked plain. As was the rule in the Roose- 
velt hunts, a pony man runs the lion to bay and the chief approaches 
afoot from another direction. Under such circumstances the lion inva- 
riably charges at the pony man — first, because he likes horseflesh and, 



ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 81 

secondly, (perhaps) because he holds the latter responsible for being 
brought to bay. And when once shot, if the wound is not through heart 
or brain, the beast advances, increasing its pace with the reception of 
each additional bullet. The last thirty or forty yards is covered like a 
whirlwind — the swiftest thing on earth — and the momentum sometimes 
carries the great brute right to the feet of the hunter with a bullet 
through the heart. 

BLIND CHARGE OF THE BLACK RHINOCEROS. 

On at least two different occasions Mr. Roosevelt dropped his lion 
as the beast was making one of its whirlwind charges, and upon one 
occasion saved the life of his pony man. He also experienced the almost 
equally terrific charge of the black rhinoceros — about as resistless, but 
shorn of some of its dangers from the fact that the rhino's sight is so 
bad; his charge is therefore literally blind. He gets the "tainted air" of 
some human "vermin" and forthwith lowers his ugly head and horns 
and charges in the direction of the obnoxious thing, whether it be a hun- 
ter's safari, a body of Masai warriors or a company of the King's African 
Rifles. Everything and everybody scatters before the awful brute, who 
blunders through the wreck, right on, seldom returning to the same 
attack. The rhinoceros loves to lurk in dark jungles, or forests, and no 
other of the big beasts is so given to charging with less provocation 
than he; among them all he seems the most "possessed of the devil." 
The white rhinoceros is a most rare animal, as compared with his black 
brother of East Africa, and few of this species have been shot within 
recent years:- One of the lucky hunters to bring a white rhino to his 
game bag was Captain Richard Dawson, of the British Coldstream 
Guards, who made the shooting in July, 1909, in the Sotik district, north- 
west of Kijabe, where the Roosevelt party was operating at the same 
time, hoping especially for similar good fortune. 

TERRIFIC ONSLAUGHT OF THE BUFFALO. 

As the rhino's sense of smell is remarkably acute, so is the buffalo's 
sense of hearing, as well as his eyesight. He selects more awful places 
in which to hide and quietly listen than does the rhino to dilate his nos- 
trils for "tainted air." He hides in great papyrus swamps, jungles of 
elephant grass or dense forests. The lone bull buffalo is a terrible ani- 
mal and often -charges without provocation, and will often hunt the 



■82 ROOSEVELT HUNTING GROUNDS. 

hunter, coming upon him unawares and tossing him into eternity. A 
wounded buffalo has a nasty trick of appearing to run away as if panic- 
stricken; then, after dashing away for a mile or so, well out of sight, 
circling round and returning to the trail. Then hiding in the high grass 
or forest, he patiently awaits the* coming of the hunter in the hope of 
charging him unawares. As his vitality equals his cunning, and both 
are backed by an awful strength, the buffalo is considered, next to the 
lion, the most dangerous of the big beasts. 

SABLE ANTELOPE. 

The sable antelope is mentioned here because, albeit not of large size 
among his kind, he is one of the most dangerous. He has long spear- 
like horns and is usually hunted with a pack of dogs. A herd of sable 
antelope when finally brought to bay is certainly a noble sight, and after 
the first encounter their pursuers are careful indeed of the distance they 
keep between their bodies and those death-dealing horns. In spite of 
their nimbleness more than one good dog is usually impaled in a hunt, 
and the sportsman himself has even met death by coming in too close. 
The sable antelope is smaller than the roan and his coloring is different, 
though the shape of the body is quite similar in the two species. 

HARTBEESTS AND GNUS (WILDBEESTS). 

Perhaps of all the soft-skinned beasts of big caliber in Africa the hart- 
beests and gnus are the hardest to kill. The wildbeests are not so dif- 
ficult to stalk, but their vitality and staying qualities are something 
phenomenal. When sound they will invariably outrun a horse, and even 
when shot through the lungs they have been known to gallop out of 
sight. 

The hartbeests are a species of antelope named "hard beasts" by the 
Dutch, who had the first long experience with them in South Africa. 
The British often varied their christening by calling them "nasty beasts"; 
and all because the creatures posted their sentries in such a wonderful 
manner that it was almost impossible to get within fair shooting dis- 
tance of a herd. The three varieties common to British East Africa are 
Jackson's, Coke's and Neumann's. They are all of a rich fawn color of 
varied shades and also vary somewhat in the shape and size of the horns, 
Jackson's hartbeest carrying the heaviest and longest. 




NEW AFRICA. 



IN BLACK AND WHITE. 

Having" left the Roosevelt expedition in the hunters' paradise of British 
East Africa, it seems a fitting opportunity to briefly retrace the route taken 
by the Uganda railroad, which is virtually fixing New Africa on the map of 
the world, and first describe the country through which it passes in "black." 
The tribes of colored men seem now reconciled to the new order of things 
and are no longer to be considered as dense savages, but as considerably more 
than semi-civilized. 

THE WANYIKA. 



A few miles out from Mombasa commence the little villages of the Wan- 
yika — sometimes not more than a small collection of huts, surrounded by a 
high fence of trees, vines or thorny shrubbery. Such defenses are partly a 
remnant of the days when they were subject to the attacks of the fierce Masai 
warriors or the equally merciless slave hunters ; but they are still necessary as 
protections against lions and other flesh eaters. They raise vegetables and 
fruits on small tracts of land, or occasionally act as cattle herders, and are 
scattered with camps of railroad employes or squads of irregular infantry 
nearly* to the Athi plains. Their appearance bespeaks considerable Arabian 
blood. 

83 



84 NEW AFRICA. 

MURDER OF THOMAS LONDON. 

Although generally peaceable, the Wanyika sometimes allow their avarice 
to overcome their scruples and caution ; and perhaps this should not be charged 
up to them as a conclusive evidence of their savagery. Perhaps their latest 
crime against the human life of a white was the murder of Thomas London, 
a British hunter in the region not far from the coast. Being hungry and 
thirsty, he approached a village and paid a native boy a silver dollar for a 
cocoanut. Such a large sum for so small a favor aroused the cupidity of an 
old chief, Makelinga, and when Mr. London had laid aside his gun and was 
bending over to wash his hands, the native leader, with three confederates, 
sprung upon him and stabbed him to death. Only five dollars were found 
upon the dead; but the murderers were tried and convicted at Mombasa and 
hung on the scene of their crime, August 28, 1908. 

THE WAKAMBA, OF THE ATHI BASIN. 

The Wakamba have the distinction of being not only the largest tribe of 
East Africa, but the only one which has never acknowledged permanent defeat 
at the Hands of the Masai. They are both farmers and herdsmen. Like most 
African tribes they are very superstitious, having their hoodoos against witch- 
ery and their official witch doctors, who are sometimes more powerful than 
the chiefs. After harvest the doctor always makes his rounds of the villages, 
receives gifts and endeavors to "smell out'' the witch in each community who 
has been responsible for the sudden deaths and other misfortunes of the year. 
When she (for it is generally a woman) has been located the villagers gradu- 
ally desert her, leaving behind only one grim warrior, who, at the first favor- 
able opportunity, pins her to the ground with his spear and leaves her to a 
death of keen agony or slow torture. In case her death struggles are too 
prolonged, the villagers return and stone her to death. A village near Mach- 
akos station seems to have been a favorite location for enforcing "Kinyolla," 
as this hideous custom is known, some forty women having met their fate 
there within a year. 

THE MASAI, WITH CLAWS CUT. 

The once warlike Masai, not unlike the Sioux of the United States in their 
heyday, are now virtually pacified and kept within the bounds of their reserva- 
tion on the Laikipia plateau, northwest of Mount Kenia and northeast of 



NEW AFRICA. 



85 



TNTakuru. Once as much hunters of men as of lions and other wild beasts, they 
were for years the terror of all the native tribes of northeast Africa between 
Lake Victoria Nyanza and the Red Sea, excepting perhaps the powerful 
Wakamba already mentioned. They were loosely confined within these west- 
ern and eastern bounds by the Uganda confederation of tribes and by the 
Somali warriors. Years ago they were almost a nomadic race, like the Sioux 
of North America or the Huns of the old world, sweeping the country with 
their wild forays of rapine and destruction. They took their cattle with them, 




Copyright 1909, by Underwood & Underwood. 

MASAI WIVES BUILDING A NEW VILLAGE. 



and it w r as the wholesale destruction of their herds by plague which caused 
many of them to establish villages and form a distinct division of the tribe. 
Then until they abandoned the warpath within recent years, at the "sugges- 
tion" of the British authorities, the Masai were generally divided into war- 
riors — splendid specimens of chocolate colored young manhood, never less 
than six feet in height — and those who had served their time at feats of arms 
and had settled down to married and domestic life. The warriors, or free- 



86 



NEW AFRICA. 




Copyright 1909, by Underwood & Underwood. 

GOING FOR HIS BRIDE. RIDING THE COW THAT IS TO PA'/ FOR HER. 

men, lived in camps, while the more staid populace dwelt in the villages, 
herded the cattle and raised gram and vegetables. At the age of puberty the 
youth of proper physique was net apart as a warrior by the rite of circum- 
cision and not only thoroughly drilled by veterans in the use of the loner- 



NEW AFRICA. 87 

N 

bladed assagai, the short sword and club and the oval shield of buffalo hide, 
but was placed on a strict diet, alternating between meat and milk. The 
young men were attended, by unmarried girls and women, who did the cook- 
ing and performed all necessary domestic offices. 



READY FOR THE WAR PATH. 

When the young man, or "elmoran," was ready for the war path he was 
certainly a sight calculated to inspire fear. Gorged with blood and meat, to 
raise his animal passions to the utmost, his oblique eyes blazed from his choco-- 
late colored face, encircled by ostrich feathers, which were carried above his 
frizzy hair in the form of an oval headdress, so increasing his natural height 
as to make him appear gigantic in stature. His shoulder cape was of vulture 
feathers, and his belt and anklets were made from the fur of the Colobus mon- 
key. When, therefore, he leaped along the war path, with his long lance tipped 
with thirty inches of keen steel, his feathers ruffing around him like an enraged 
bird of prey, it is not singular that he struck such terror into the heart of a 
savage foe as to half win the battle before it was even begun. In the days 
when the Masai were in their prime as warriors, no young man dare return 
to his camp without human blood on his spear, or booty to appeal to the 
admiration and affection of his sweetheart. Once married, he settled down 
in one of the villages and was allowed to vary his diet with vegetables. ■ 

As the cow is the main food supply of the Masai, it is necessary that the 
young warrior who is about to turn Benedict should present his prospective 
father-in-law with a first-class animal, both as an earnest of his honorable 
intentions and as actual pay for his bride. His journey to the home of his 
fair one is usually made on the back of his sleek gift, the young suitor being 
accompanied by a body-guard of friends. 



THE MASAI OF TODAY. 

The young Masai, though he may no more go forth to slay his brother, 
is in demand by the white hunter as a helper or guide, and he also maintains 
his old-time reputation as one of the bravest sportsmen in the world who has 
ever faced the lion. When he now returns single handed, with his spear 
dipped in the life-blood of the king of beasts, the whole village turns out to 
give him a deserved ovation. 



88 NEW AFRICA. 

The Masai villages are still built in the form of a circle, surrounded by a 
strong thorn fence, and the cattle are carefully herded within. The huts are 
made of bent boughs and the roofs plastered with cow dung. Although the 




Copyright 1909, by Underwood & Underwood. 

YOUNG MAN HONORED FOR KILLING A LION. 



dresses of the men and women are in the transformatory period, they generally 
retain their old-time characteristics. The women wear a profusion of string 
beads and anklets of iron and brass, with a small apronlike garment in front 



NEW AFRICA. 



89 



of the body and a longer garment behind. The men, not in military costume, 
wear an upper garment of tanned skin, and a length of cloth fastened at the 
neck and hanging down behind. Their armlets are of ivory and horn; they 
wear ornaments of slender iron chain, showing good workmanship, and their 




Copyright 1909 by 
Underwood & Underwood. 



TLAYING BAO. 



hair is usually gathered in a chignon which hangs between the shoulders. 
Their ear-lobes are distended with ornaments, for, like other semi-civilized 
tribes, they are loaded with the bulk of attractive things for the edification of 
the opposite sex: In that particular they follow the usual order of birds and 
animals, among which it is the male who is aflame with color and is loaded 



90 NEW AFRICA. ' 

with the noticeable adornments. They seem to have few amusements, but, 
like many other African tribes, are partial to games of chance, or gambling. 
Bao, as their most popular gambling game is called, is represented in full 
swing in the accompanying illustration. 

Generally speaking the Masai of today are dignified and self-contained, 
capable agriculturists and herdsmen, quick witted and possessed of considerable 
oratorical ability. They are a mixed Ethiopian and negro race, those in whom 
the former blood predominates having good features — so good, in fact, that, 
barring their chocolate color, they would pass for Europeans. Their 
general appearance, bravery and adaptability to military discipline are 
so much in their favor that many of them have been incorporated into the 
King's African Rifles and are employed with good effect in the British 
work of "pacification." With the Swahili, the Masai have given names 
to the animals of British East Africa. 

THE SWAHILI AND KIKUKU. 

The Swahili are perhaps the most polished and sedate of any of the 
native tribes of Central and East Africa. They are noted traders, are 
Mohammedans and, in their flowing white garments, much resemble the 
Arabs. They number fully a million souls and have their pretty villages 
and bazaars as far east as Mount Kenia. 

It is said that the Kikuyu, between Nairobi and Mount Kenia, num- 
ber some 300,000' souls, and, although they have made as much progress 
as any native tribe in agriculture, they are considered unreliable as citi- 
zens and the protectorate police are obliged to keep a keen eye out for 
them. Further to the west and north, from the Mau escarpment to the 
Laikipia Plains and beyond are the villages and huts of the Wandorrobo, 
scattered along the Tana and its tributaries and hidden in the depths of 
the forests. They are among the oldest professional black hunters in 
Africa and will be exterminated before they become farmers. They are 
exceedingly primitive and live mostly on game and honey. 

NAKED TRIBES NEAR VICTORIA NYANZA.. 

The country from Kibigori station to Kavirondo Gulf (the eastern 
arm of Lake Victoria Nyanza) was inhabited by tribes who, notwith- 
standing the present-day influences of several years, might still have 
just emerged from the Garden of Eden — many even minus the prover- 
bial fig-leaf. The females load themselves with bead necklaces and other, 






NEW AFRICA. 91 

ornaments, and the men delight in elaborate head-dresses, made of 
feathers and banded with ivory. They are laughing, merry people, live 
in villages surrounded with aloe hedges, and usually surround the trav- 
eler with curious looks and gestures, quite unconscious of their condi- 
tion. Physically, they are bronze models for the artist and sculptor — 
tall, symmetrically developed, gentle-mannered, peaceable, and, from 
the most reliable accounts of European travelers, are chaste and moral. 
Of course, the efforts of the new civilization has resulted in some cloth- 
ing of the naked, albeit the majority still cling closely to the instinct \)f 
their forefathers in the matter of dress, or no-dress. Apropos of dress 
reform among the Kavirondo — the story is told on a good English lady 
who, having been shocked at the sights she saw, stopped at Port Flor- 
ence, the terminus of the railroad, long enough to purchase a huge 
bundle of cloth of home manufacture. This she sent down to Kibigori 
for the purpose of being distributed among her dusky sisters ; but what 
was her disgust, on her return from a short stay at Entebbe, to find 
that the aforesaid sisters had passed all the goods over to their husbands 
and lovers, who were all adorned with beautiful fresh turbans. 

THE NANDI TRIBE. 

North of the Kavirondo was the Nandi tribe. It is an offshoot of the 
Masai and, like the parent stock, its members are cattle fanciers and 
warriors. On scenting danger from hostile tribes, or British soldiers, 
it was their custom to make off into the forests and rocky gorges 
marked by the Nandi escarpment, and securely hide their flocks and 
herds before venturing forth themselves. Even then they did not come 
into the open, but after they had posted their sentries on every com- 
manding hilltop in the country, and learned from the answering shouts 
the position and strength of the enemy, they were ready to commence 
their ambushed warfare with poisoned arrows. They gave the builders 
of the Uganda road some trouble; but more as thieves than as warriors. 
When they first set eyes on the fine metal used in the tracks and tele- 
graph, the savage love for ornamentation overcame all other desires — 
even the desire to avenge the coming of the white man. For months 
the progress and operation of the line toward the lake were seriously 
impeded by their thefts of telegraph wire for bracelets and earrings and 
railroad bolts for fancy spear heads. 



92 NEW AFRICA. 

Much of the history of the Nandi and Kavirondo tribes is written 
in the past tense, as they are among the unfortunate people who are 
victims of the Sleeping Sickness, which has killed two hundred thousand 
people in the regions tributary to Lake Victoria Nyanza ; and as no cure 
has yet been found for the terrible plague the order has gone forth that 
all tribes inhabiting the infested area shall be removed back into a safe 
country. The Sleeping Sickness had been especially destructive to the 
Kavirondo, as the tsetse fly, which produced it, had free access to their 
naked bodies. 

NATIVE KINGDOM OF UGANDA. 

One of the chief objects in building the Uganda Railroad was to 
tap the rich native kingdom of Uganda west of Lake Victoria Nyanza. 
It is a well organized state, composed of a union of the most intelligent 
and progressive of the Baganda tribes. They have well been termed 
the Japanese of Africa, as they possess a wonderful power of absorbing 
and practically applying the knowledge derived from European contact. 
Even before Cameron and Stanley came among them, rumors had 
reached the outside world of a far-advanced native confederation hold- 
ing the country between lakes Victoria and Albert Nyanza. But it was 
not until its last autocratic King was banished by the British and a 
protectorate assumed that the state was organized along modern lines, 
although the Catholic and Episcopal missionaries had planted many seeds 
which had borne good fruit. The territory is now divided into twenty 
counties, each county ruled by a chief, and the entire state is governed 
by King Daudi Chwa, who, as he is only about thirteen years of age, 
is under the guardianship of three regents. The native parliament con- 
sists of the regents and county chiefs named, sixty Notables (three from 
each county) and six Persons of Importance, all appointed by the King 
and subject to the veto of the British government. Besides the estab- 
lishment of a virtually modern monarchy, Uganda has also made a great 
advance toward modern standards in the abolishment of the most ob- 
jectionable features of polygamy — such as the selling of women for 
wives. 

Physically, Uganda is a land of beauties — gorgeous landscape effects, 
highly colored birds, enormous moths and butterflies and tropical lux- 
uriance of vegetation. The soil is wonderfully rich. The country is 
simply unctuous with bananas. Cotton grows everywhere, and other 



NEW AFRICA. 93 

products, either native or introduced, are cocoa, coffee, tea, oranges, 
pineapples, lemons, rubber, hemp, vanilla and cinnamon. More wonder- 
ful still, most of the fruits and vegetables of the temperate zone thrive 
well. Is it wonderful that the British wanted to get into railroad con- 
nection with such a country? 

It is one of the sad and most dramatic features of modern history 
that this wonderful country — this intelligent people, so eager for knowl- 
edge and so capable of absorbing and profiting by it — should be devas- 
tated by the mysterious plague of the Sleeping Sickness. The efforts of 
modern scientists and philanthropists to discover its causes, eradicate it 
and save Uganda itself from extermination are noted at the last of this 
chapter. 

WHITE BELT. 

The White Belt of British East Africa comprises the country north 
of the Uganda Railroad from Kapiti Plains (or perhaps Nairobi) to 
Port Florence, for an average of forty miles inland, wherein is studded 
most of the plantations, stock farms and private hunting grounds of 
British, German, Boer and American proprietors — many of them set- 
tlers. There are those who assert that, on account of the remoteness 
of the producing territory and South American competition, coffee will 
never be a profitable crop, although so readily raised from the soil — 
the same objections applying to fruits and vegetables, especially potatoes. 
It is naturally a fine live-stock country; but the fever tick has been im- 
ported from German East Africa and has made such inroads among the 
cattle as to discourage many live-stock raisers. The native cattle are 
usually black and white, and small compared with the English species. 
If left to themselves and the devices of the native African they would 
undoubtedly perish under the attacks of the fever-spreading tick; but 
new and vigorous blood is being introduced into the native herds from 
European sources, and the white scientist has discovered that by wiring 
a herd of sheep in a tick-infested area the insects are soon exterminated. 
Their bites are harmless to sheep, which also eat the insects without loss 
of appetite or health. So that the live-stock industries of British East 
Africa may eventually flourish exceedingly; but a majority of the 
prophets seem to vote in favor of King Cotton as the coming monarch 
of the soil, pointing to the fact that both in the lowlands and uplands 
it has been grown with success. 



94 NEW AFRICA. 

Within the White Belt of British East Africa no class of actual set- 
tlers are showing more adaptability and rugged determination to wring 
substantial results from the old, dormant country than the Boers, many 
of whom had planted themselves in the soil before the British protec- 
torate was even dreamed of. Some of the richest lands along the rail- 
road lie around beautiful Lake Nakuru, where the line makes its first 
decided turn to the westward on its way to Lake Victoria Nyanza. At 
this locality is one of the largest and most prosperous Boer colonies in 
East Africa, most of the settlers being housed in the typical corrugated 
iron buildings, which are not pretty to look at, but are both light, strong, 
cool and weather-proof. As the altitude here is more than seven thou- 
sand feet above sea level, it is not always heat alone against which the 
householders need protection. 

GREAT SCENIC SECTION OF RAILWAY. 

The great scenic section of the Uganda Railroad is from Nairobi to 
Nakuru, during which the country rapidly rises through a series of alter- 
nating escarpments and valleys to an altitude of nearly eight thousand 
feet at the Mau Escarpment beyond the latter station. During the first 
twenty-four miles out of Nairobi the rise is some two thousand feet. 
To the west of Nairobi, at the foot of the Kikuyu hills, the plain country 
abruptly ends. As far as the eye can see extends a frowning wall of 
forest-clad rocks, and when the train has struggled to high ground, now 
six thousand feet above the sea, it shows the tourist one of the most 
impressive sights in East Africa. 

ESCARPMENT STATION AND RIFT VALLEY. 

From Escarpment Station the railroad pitches and zigzags its way 
into Rift Valley, fifteen hundred feet below, its broad expanses being 
broken by strange volcanic formations. Some of the shattered craters 
in the valley are not inactive, and one slumbering volcano is planted in 
the middle of Lake Naivasha.. To the west the valley is barricaded by 
the lofty Mau hills and cliffs, which collectively form the escarpment 
which bends toward the northwest and crosses the railroad beyond 
Nakuru. Before the days of the railroad the traveler was lowered over 
the escarpment into the valley below, or elevated from the valley to the 
heights — as the case might be — by an old rope lift. 






NEW AFRICA. 



95 



ON TO KIJABE STATION. 

Kijabe, which is the next station beyond Escarpment, is well named 
"The Wind," as it is one of the bleakest places along the road." One of 
the most interesting expeditions from Nairobi was that made by the 
ex-President and his party to Kijabe, a station on the railroad forty- 




ROOSEVELT, MAJOR MEARNS AND THE TRAFFIC MANAGER VIEWING THE COUNTRY ALONG 

THE UGANDA RAILWAY. 



96 NEW AFRICA. 

four miles northwest of the city, which is the headquarters of the 
African Inland Mission. It is an independent American organization, 
with home councils in Philadelphia and London, and several schools are 
conducted at Kijabe for the education of missionaries' children and the 
industrial training of the natives. 

The party, which consisted of Mr. Roosevelt, Edmund Heller, Major 
Mearns and Kermit Roosevelt, arrived at their destination on the after- 
noon of June 3rd, the Colonel, the Major and the traffic manager riding 
about half the way on the cow-catcher so as to obtain the full benefit 
of the glorious scenery in the Rift Valley. They were met at the station 
by the porters and the American missionaries, and passed the night in 
tents near the railroad. The next morning the party spent some time 
shooting Colobus and green-faced monkeys, as well as rare birds. In 
the forenoon Mr. Roosevelt made a thorough inspection of the mission, 
and afterward had luncheon with forty of the missionaries and their 
wives and settlers in the country. 

LOVELY AND MYSTERIOUS LAKE NAIVASHA. 

One of the greatest wonders and beauties of the Rift Valley is Lake 
Naivasha, about an hour's ride from the Escarpment Station. This 
sheet of water is about ten miles square, and the rim of a submerged 
crater makes a crescent-shaped island in its midst. Although its waters 
are rather brackish they are always sunny and glisten like a "Tear" in 
the rather somber landscape; and it should be added that "Naivasha" 
translated into English is a "Tear." "Almost always," says one who 
looked upon the scene with a bright eye, "there is a smile of sunshine 
on her waters, while on the other hand there is as often a black frown of 
thunder clouds rolling over the Mau and a white cap of rain on the peak 
of Longonot" — the latter being a rather portentous looking volcano 
which almost closes the further end of the Rift Valley. But though the 
water of Lake Naivasha is by no means sweet, its bosom is covered with 
pink, white and blue lilies, and is fringed with sedges, seeds and papyrus. 
It is also the home of myriads of Egyptian geese, cranes, herons, 
ducks and snipe. The borders of the lake and the islands scattered over 
it are especially favored breeding grounds for herons, who love to feed 
among the herds of native cattle pasturing on the grassy slopes which 
roll away from Naivasha toward Nakuru. Hippos abound in the lake, 
but there are no crocodiles;" and toward the northwest is big game of 



NEW AFRICA. 97 

all kinds, as well as a fine region for bush buck, while on the wide grassy 
flats and the lower slopes of the hills are great flocks -of sheep and 
goats, herded by the natives. 

GOVERNMENT BREEDING FARM NEAR NAIVASHA. 

At the government breeding farm, a few miles from Lake Naivasha, 
efforts are being made to cross the zebra with the horse or mule, in 
order to produce a hybrid which may both resist the diseases of the 
country and at the same time be easily tamed and be valuable as a beast 
of burden. This attempt to solve the horse problem in British East 
Africa has not met with as much success as the government's efforts to 
improve the native hairy sheep and the humped African ox. The former 
has been so crossed with Sussex and Australian blood as to be trans- 
formed into a very respectable wool-bearing animal, while the native 
hump is disappearing, and the mixed ox is coming on the scene as a 
fair Shorthorn. 

NAKURU AND ITS CHARMING LAKE. 

Salty though it is to the taste, as are -most of the bodies of water in 
this region, Lake Nakuru is charming both in the vegetable and animal 
life which it supports. A rich grass country surrounds it, which, as 
stated, is thickly settled by Boer farmers. Beyond, along the Mau Es- 
carpment, is one of the finest pieces of railroad engineering in East 
Africa, consisting of nearly three miles of viaducts, or twenty-seven 
separate iron bridges spanning beautiful valleys and foaming torrents. 
The really interesting part of the great engineering feat lies in the fact 
that it is really an American achievement — a demonstration of Amer- 
ican ingenuity, pluck and technical skill. 

FROM FORT TERNAN TO PORT FLORENCE. 

At the station called Fort Ternan the railroad has fairly cut through 
the Mau Escarpment, and thence to Port Florence, or Kisumu (the 
native village), carries one through a swampy but fertile country — the 
approach to Lake Victoria Nyanza and the region infested by the tsetse 
fly and devastated by the Sleeping Sickness ; the country of the Nandi 
and the Kavirondo. Fort Ternan, which has been dubbed a "placeless 



98 



NEW AFRICA. 



name," is about forty miles from the terminus of the road and some 
thousand feet above, it. This section of the line taps a level country of 
brilliant green dotted with small parks of flourishing trees. 

APPROACH TO LAKE— PORT FLORENCE. 

Realizing that Lake Victoria Nyanza is the greatest of the African 
lakes and, next to Lake Superior, in the United States, the largest body 
of fresh water in the world, Mr. Roosevelt shared the common dis- 
appointment of all travelers who approach it from the east -for the first 




time. The country is so flat around Gulf Kavirondo that all that can 
be seen is an unimpressive arm of dirty brown water thrust out into the 
landscape — no vast expanse of blue waters stretching to the horizon, 
with appropriate settings of rocky cliffs or smiling shores. But the tram 
soon runs onto the pier at Port Florence, which is little more than a 
transfer station from the railroad to the steamers which ply across the 



NEW AFRICA. 99 

lake to Entebbe, the capital of the Uganda protectorate, and to other 
interesting points in the native kingdom. It has also a large dockyard, 
at which all the lake steamers are built and repaired, and the resident 
part of the modern town contains trim houses, well shaded and backed 
up against the hills which overlook the gulf at this point. 

BIG HUNTING GROUNDS TO THE NORTH. 

Before crossing the lake to Entebbe, the sportsman always samples 
the noted grounds for big game, lying between the Nandi escarpment 
and Mount Elgon, especially along the Nzoia River and along the south- 
ern slopes of the mountain mentioned. It is an especially fine lion 
country. All through the lower Nzoia country, in the comparatively 
level stretches of sward, are great ant-hills interspersed with clumps of 
thorn bushes. The ant-hills form good points of observation for the 
hunter and the thorn bushes fine screens. The lions also like to mount 
these towers and survey the country for game, or, if they are tracked, 
to discover the progress and position of their pursuers. This ant-hill 
country is favorable, it seems, both for lion and lion hunter, when the 
sportsman is afoot; but it is obviously no place for horsemen. When 
following the animal into cover, the hunter should, if possible, deter- 
mine whether he is after a lion, or lioness with cubs. During May, 
June and July they run together in mixed bands, which is a favorable 
season for hunting them ; during the other months the females withdraw 
from the males and bear their litters. The months between July and 
May may therefore be called the dangerous months for the sportsmen. 
Besides the lion, the whole country from the Nandi hills to and along 
the Nzoia River abounds in buffalo, eland, roan antelopes, giraffes, Jack- 
son's hartbeests and water and reed buck. Better still, from the railroad 
to the Yala River may generally be found several herds of elephants, one 
seeming especially to haunt the locality near Kibigori station; but the 
great grounds of the monster game are east and southeast of Mount 
Elgon. 

ACROSS THE LAKE TO ENTEBBE. 

Entebbe, across the lake from Port Florence, is the administrative 
capital of the Uganda protectorate and is connected with Kampala, the 
native capital, by a well constructed twenty-five-mile road (not rail- 



100 NEW AFRICA. 

road). There is another fine pike from Kampala to Lake Albert 
Nyanza ; and the entire distance of two hundred miles may be com- 
fortably covered in an automobile. Entebbe itself was carefully planned 
and built. It has such a charming location, surroundings and accommo- 
dations for the visitor that many are suggesting that the literal trans- 
lation, "The Chair," should be rendered more freely "The Easy Chair." 
The houses are mostly brick, with corrugated iron roofs of red, and the 
official residences are surrounded by large gardens, connected by broad 
avenues. Flowering trees are planted along the streets, and many of 
the gigantic forest trees have been left where they originally stood. 
As to club and, social life it is a repetition of Nairobi, plus a beautiful 
site. The shores of the lake, and the islands with which it is studded, 
are ablaze with the brilliant colors of plant and bird, and the air laden 
with tropical perfumes and the myriad noises of insect, monkey and the 
feathered tribe. The slopes between the town and the lake have been 
converted into a fine botanic garden, which is a condensed exhibition of 
the plant and animal life around. 

THE SLEEPING SICKNESS. 

Eight years ago this beautiful region of islands and tropical forests, 
of fertile land and teeming vegetation, was densely populated by in- 
dustrious and progressive natives — tilling the soil, herding cattle and 
learning to be good citizens, according to their lights. Since they have 
been swept away in great waves of death by the Sleeping Sickness, and 
one of the most, interesting institutions of Entebbe is the laboratory of 
the Royal Commission on Sleeping Sickness, where experiments are 
conducted in the hope of getting at the cause and remedies of the ter- 
rible disease. At one time four thousand incurables were slowly dying 
in Uganda hospitals, and thousands more expecting to take their places. 
Up to the present time, however, only a few Europeans have died of the 
malady, one of the unfortunates being Lieutenant Tulloch, who con- 
tracted the disease while making the initial experiments at the labora- 
tory and died shortly after his return to England in the summer of 1906. 
The only deaths in the railroad districts east of the Mau ranges have 
been of Uganda natives who have contracted the disease at home, and 
it has never advanced beyond Mount Kenia to the east or Mount Kili- 
manjaro to the south. 






NEW AFRICA. 



101 



Sleeping Sickness has been known in Africa for more than a cen- 
tury, but its connection with the tsetse fly was not recognized until 1902. 
The infection, or organisms known as trypanosomes, is conveyed by 
this insect in some manner not yet clearly ascertained. The incubation 
period is about three weeks. Then comes an irregular fever, ranging 




Copyright 1909 by Underwood & Underwood 

CROCODILE CAUGHT ON THE SHORE OF LAKE VICTORIA NYANZA 

Natives live in terror of Crocodiles and kill them whenever they can. In some tribes no 

young man is considered a real warrior until he has speared a Crocodile. 

Then all the belles of the tribe worship him. 



102 NEW AFRICA. 

from a few days to weeks, with progressive weakness, swelling of the 
glands, affections of the skin, and final paralysis of the entire nervous 
system. There may be an interval of years — as many as seven — before 
the profound lassitude, the real onset of the Sleeping Sickness, ap- 
proaches. The patient then becomes an automaton, even forgetting to 
chew the food which is placed in his mouth, finally dying of starvation, 
convulsions or local paralysis. The mortality of the disease, when once 
implanted, must be given as 100 per cent; there is no hope, except in 
prevention. 

Professor Koch, the great German scientist, who has made so thor- 
ough an investigation of the matter, has added to the difficulties of the 
case by offering proofs that the disease may be transmitted in other ways 
than by the tsetse fly. He also claims to have discovered a connection 
between the disease and crocodiles, as in the neighborhood of Lake 
Victoria Nyanza the tsetse fly subsists almost entirely on the blood of 
these reptiles. Tsetse flies, both males and females, are blood-suckers 
and feed during the day. As they fly so swiftly and alight so softly, it 
is very difficult to detect them until after the mischief has been done. 

ROOSEVELT'S ENTERTAINERS AT ENTEBBE. 

Mr. Roosevelt was deeply interested in this status of the great fight 
between science and the Sleeping Sickness of East Africa, and his host 
and hostess at Entebbe gave him every facility to investigate the efforts 
being made to stamp out the plague. Mrs. George Francis McDaniel 
Ennis, his special hostess, is the only American resident of Entebbe, 
and a charming author, woman and entertainer. She was formerly Miss 
Ethel Kirkland, of Chicago, daughter of Major Joseph Kirkland, a brave 
soldier and an able writer — for some years literary editor of the "Chicago 
Tribune." Mrs. Ennis met her husband while traveling, the latter being 
en route to assume the judgeship of the Uganda protectorate. They 
have a son, and a beautiful, completely appointed home ; no one of note, 
in fact, since they became residents of Entebbe has left the place without 
enjoying their hospitality. Of course, the formal reception of Colonel 
and ex-President Roosevelt, with his party, was at the hands of Sir 
Hesketh Bell, the governor; but the real home entertaining — the atten- 
tions which went to the great American's heart — were from Mrs. Ennis, 
his countrywoman; and no better God-speed toward the Nile and civil- 
ization could have been devised. 



LION HUNTING IN AFRICA 

Roosevelt Meets the King of the African Forests in His Native Jungle — Three Lions 
Bagged in One Day — Interesting Facts About the Lion. 



•Nothing is more exciting in an African hunter's experience than his first 
encounter with the lion. Mr. Roosevelt had long been waiting for this crown- 
ing event in his life as a sportsman with eager anticipation. In British East 
Africa, where lions are more numerous than deer in our western states, he 




AN EAST AFRICAN FARM. 



did not have to wait long for the fulfillment of his expectations. After a short 
stay at Kapiti Plains on the Uganda Railroad, he broke camp and soon 
reached the ranch of Sir Alfred Pease, beautifully located on the shores of 
the Athi River. Our illustration shows one of the farms in this neighborhood, 

103 



104 



LION HUNTING IN AFRICA. 



where English settlers or office-holders are endeavoring to establish themselves 
as comfortably as the conditions of a new tropical country will permit. 

One day three lions had been discovered attacking a buffalo who had been 
grazing on the prairie near the edge of a dense jungle. As the hunting party 
approached they saw traces of the lion's cruel rule all over the "velt," where 
bones of zebras and antelopes were the only remnants of its ghastly repast. 
The hunters stopped at some distance from the jungle, while the native beaters 
drove the beasts toward them. Two of the lions, scenting the danger, bounded 
off and hid in the jungle. But the third, blinded by fury and fear, and with a 




l ' - - - v. 




From photograph. BLACR MANE£) £AST AFRJCAN LIQN 

roar that reminded of a distant thunder, came leaping through the air swift 
as lightning, and would in a second have buried its sharp claws in the quivering 
limbs of its awe-stricken victims — when just in the right moment a rifle shot 
resounded through the breathless silence of the plains, and the ex-President's 
first big African game tumbled to the ground, hit in the brain by a soft- 
headed bead from his never-failing Winchester barrel. The two beaters, one 
an ebony-colored native, the other a white man from Sir Alfred's ranch, 
were saved, and "Bwana Tumbo" had established his reputation on African 
soil as an unrivaled crack shot. 



106 -LION HUNTING IN AFRICA. 

This, however, was only the beginning of the achievements of a strenuous 
day. No sooner had the loud shouts of the natives announced this glorious 
triumph over their sworn enemy, than one of the beaters came running from 
the creek to tell them that another lion had been seen along the sandy banks. 
The party at once started off to track the game. Following the sandy trail 
along the shore, over stony ground and through patches of underbrush and 
coarse grass, they expected to see the "simba" at any moment, but a heavy 
rain had blurred the spoor in the soft sand and made the tracking somewhat 
difficult. At last the track was totally lost in the wet sand and the party made 
a halt, ready to give up the fruitless search. But our strenuous ex-President 
would listen to no such advice. The old lion hunter Selous sided in with 
him, and off they started for another high river-bed, towards which the lion 
had been seen running. Luck favored them this time, and they soon were on 
the track again. The trail led to a thicket of three-feet-high grass, reed 
and bushes forming a dense jungle on a little island. The native beaters 
began shouting and throwing stones in this hiding place, where nothing could 
be seen but the luxurious impenetrable tropical vegetation, while our hunters 
posted themselves on the opposite side, ready to receive the jungle king. 
A terrible growl was soon heard, there was a rustling in the underbrush, and 
with a swift leap the lion darted towards the Colonel. He came so close 
that the bold sportsman almost could feel his hot breath tickling his nostrils. 
The situation was an exciting one. Missing the target meant a sure death 
between the jaws of the beast. Not losing a second the ex-President threw 
his Winchester up to his shoulder and sent a buzzing bullet through the 
lion's heart while at the highest point of its leap. 

"That's a fine one," the Colonel was heard to exclaim, when the heavy 
body of the brute touched the trembling ground. 

It would seem as if the two trophies won in one day would have been 
enough to satisfy the most ambitious sportsman. But they had only just 
whetted our American nimrod's appetite. Disdaining the smaller game that 
swarmed around his safari, he said to his companions: "Let us find another 
lion," and off they started again. The rays of the tropical sun fell upon their 
heads like burning blasts from a furnace, and everyone felt the depressing 
effect of the murderous African climate. But on they marched — natives, 
English and Americans — inspired by the indomitable energy of the most 
strenuous man on earth. The region through which they went excels in 
beautiful tropical scenery. Diverse varieties of palms, olives and fig trees 






LION HUNTING IN AFRICA. . 107 

form symmetrical groves and little copses all over the plains, while vari- 
colored flowers fill the atmosphere with their intoxicating flavors, and relieve 
the monotony of the waving grass, where herds of wild and tamed animals 
rove around, and beautiful singing-birds adorned with the most brilliant 
feather shrouds, glittering in all the colors of the rainbow, enliven the somber 
hue of the landscape. But all this marvelous mosaic of nature could not 
captivate the eyes of our mighty hunter. He had already tasted the exhilarat- 
ing excitement of the contest for the bigger game, and was eagerly longing 
for another chance to make use of his skill. And this opportunity was not 
long in coming. As they were marching along at a rapid pace a large 
maneless lion's tawny shape was suddenly seen at some distance, through the 
fall grass. The beaters, encouraged through the prowess and boldness of the 
illustrious American hunter, approached its crouching form less cautiously 
than usual. The beast saw its dangerous situation and with a terrible roar 
came bounding straight on the foremost beater. Terror stricken, the man 
turned and ran towards the Colonel for protection. He, too, was on a run, 
though in the opposite direction. Two lives were in jeopardy. Nothing but 
a suie aim and a quick hand could save from death. But Mr. Roosevelt 
lived up to his reputation. With the same cool presence of mind that has 
characterized all his actions, whether leading his Rough Riders to victory 
against the Spanish lines or at the helm of our government in fight against 
reckless lawbreakers, he instantly sized up the situation and acted accord- 
ingly. The lion turned its right flank towards him and held its head down 
in the tall grass, thus making it impossible to hit its most vulnerable parts — 
the heart or the brain. But swift as a lightning flash the ex-Presidential bullet 
came whirring through the air and struck the beast right through the spine 
and down he went, to rise no more. 

It was a master shot, indeed, and the alert and quick-eyed natives were 
not loath in appreciating the unequaled skill of a hunter who, in one day 
and on his first lion hunt, had killed three of these ferocious marauders under 
so thrilling and exciting circumstances. 

The lions were skinned by the natives and carried to the camp, where 
the African beaters and bearers celebrated the events of the day in the usual 
way, by songs and dances, for the killing of a lion is always made an occasion 
of festivities among the native tribes. 

The spoils of the day having been disposed of, and the hides properly 
cared for by Mr. Heller, the professional taxidermist of the expedition, the 



108 



LION HUNTING IN AFRICA. 



party started on its way back to Sir . Alfred's farm, where they joined the 
other members of the safari. Our illustration gives the reader a vivid idea 
of how Roosevelt's caravan looked. It is a photographic reproduction of an 
East African safari, showing the bearers with their loads. Upon leaving 
the Uganda Railway our African travelers had chiefly to depend on their 
own legs for locomotion in penetrating the wild hunting grounds, the natives 
acting as animals of burden, getting 15 cents per day and food, consisting 




From photo. 



A SAFARI ON MARCH THROUGH EAST AFRICAN WILDERNESS. 



of maize, beans or antelope meat. The daily march is from 15 to 20 miles, 
and it is estimated that between 75,000 and 100,000 of them are constantly 
employed at present. 

During the first three months of his African hunt Roosevelt killed not 
less than seven lions. Their skins were prepared by the skilled taxidermists 
who followed the expedition, and sent to the Smithsonian Institution in 
Washington. 

Many strange things happen on the chase in British East Africa. When 
they were sitting around the camp fire one night, Mr. Selous told Colonel 
Roosevelt the following interesting experience : He and Mr. McMillan were 
one day out in this same district, accompanied by Judd, a professional hunter, 



LION HUNTING IN AFRICA. 109 

after lions, and Judd was following Mr. Selous on a mule. Suddenly his 
mule nearly stepped on a huge lion, and as the mule swerved Judd fired from 
his hip with his rifle and almost simultaneously the mule bucked him off and 
he landed almost touching the lion. 

He thought his last hour had come and prepared tx> make a fight for his 
life, but to his surprise the lion did not move. Then he suddenly realized 
that the lion was dead. He got up and inspected it,, and found that his shot 
had entered the eye and killed it instantly, without leaving a mark on the 
skin. Mr. McMillan took the skin home to have it set up. 

At Mweru on the Nyeri road, man-eating lions have been playing havoc 
with government safaris and traders' safaris, so that at last the government 
was forced to close the road to the traffic. 

It is estimated that some hundred native men, women and children have 
lost their lives to these man-eaters, and so if Colonel Roosevelt kills them 
he will have done the community special service. 

The lion is not only one of the largest and most dangerous, but also one 
of the most interesting of all the wild animals of Africa. We therefore 
will give our -readers an account of its habits and history, accompanied by 
illustrations showing the king of the forest and the jungle in his native haunts 
and surrounded by his tropical environments. 

"As bold as a lion" is the phrase most commonly used to express the 
highest order of courage, for by general consent the people of all countries 
have bestowed upon the lion the title of "King of Beasts." Certainly no 
other animal is so noble and majestic in appearance. Its massive head, upon 
which, in the case of the male animal, there is usually a long, thick mane, the 
King's Crown, as it were, its stout, thick legs and huge paws, together with the 
graceful formation of its body and sweeping tail, make it the most imposing 
and splendid looking animal known to natural history. 

Of late years one authority has disputed the lion's title of "King of 
Beasts." Mr. F. C. Selous, the famous hunter, says that the lion does not 
carry its head as high as it should, and that it is lacking in many traits that 
we usually ascribe to a noble animal. Livingstone, the great explorer, declares 
that the lion is more correctly described as cowardly and mean than brave 
and noble, yet I know many instances where the lion has shown itself to be 
the most courageous of animals. 

In common with the other large cats of the Old World, the lion has the 
pupil of the eye circular; but it is at once distinguished from all the other 



110 THE STORY OF THE LION. 

members of the family by the long hair growing- on the head, neck, and 
shoulders of the males to form the flowing mane. This mane varies in size 
and color in different individuals, but, contrary to> what has often been stated, 
is seen on Indian as well as on African lions. Frequently the long hair of 
the mane is continued as a fringe down the middle line of the belly. Another 
distinctive characteristic of the male lion is the brush of long hair at the tip 
of the tail. In the middle of this brush of hair, at the very extremity of 
the tail, is a small horny appendage surrounded by a tuft. Much speculation 
has been indulged in as to* the use of this so-called "thorn" in the lion's tail. 
One old story says that it is employed to* rouse the animal to* fury when the tail 
is lashed against the flanks. 

The hair on the remainder of the body of the male lion, and on both 
the head and body in the female, is short and close. In the adults of both 
sexes the color of the body-hair is the well-known yellowish-brown, or tawny, 
but the tint varies in different individuals. The long hair of the male's mane 
may vary from tawny to a blackish-brown. Young lion-cubs are marked with 
transverse dark stripes running down the sides of the body, and likewise by 
a single stripe of similar tint along the middle of the back. The mane of 
the male does not make its appearance till the animal is about three years 
of age, and continues to grow until the age of about six years. The full 
length of a lion's life does not appear known, but it has been ascertained 
that they will live to> thirty, and it is said even till forty years. 

For a long period it was considered that the Indian lion differed from its 
African relative by the total absence of the mane in the male, which was 
regarded as indicating a distinct species. Owing to the differences in the 
length and color of the manes of African lions from, different districts, it was 
likewise held that there were two* or more species in Africa. It, however, 
has been definitely settled that such variations are not constant, and that 
there is but a single species. Although it may be that some adult specimens 
of the Indian lion are maneless, yet well-maned examples have been killed, 
while those which were stated to prove the existence of a maneless race are 
now known to have been not full grown. 

With regard to the variations of the African lion, the Dutch hunters main- 
tain the existence of from three to four distinct species. 

For my part, I cannot see that there is any reason for supposing that 
more than one species exists, and as out of fifty male lion skins scarcely two 
will be found exactly alike in the color and length of the mane, I think it 
would be as reasonable to suppose that there are twenty species as three. The 



THE STORY OF THE LION. 



Ill 



fact is that between the animal with hardly a vestige of a mane, and the far 
handsomer but much less common beast, with a long flowing black mane, 
every possible intermediate variety may be found. On one occasion I shot 
two old male lions, which I found lying together under the same bush, both 
of which agreed as near as possible in size, but while the one was full-maned, 
with a very dark-colored fur, the other was very yellow and had but little 
mane. Shortly after, with a brother sportsman, I again met with a dark, 
full-maned lion in company-with a nearly maneless light-colored one. Of still 
more importance was the killing of a lioness with three cubs, of which two 




AFRICAN LEON* 



were males and one a female. Of the two male cubs, the one, owing to the 
dark color of the tips of the hair, was almost black, while the other was 
reddish-yellow. The skin of the female cub was also of a light color. Now 
I firmly believe that the two male cubs would have grown up, the one into 
a dark-skinned, black-maned lion, the other into' a yellow lion, with but little 
mane ; and further than this, I believe that the two> pairs of males I have 
mentioned above were cubs of the same litters, and had been hunting in couples 
since their cubhood. 

It seems quite probable that the lions of one district may differ to a certain 



112 THE STORY OF THE LION. 

extent in some respects from those of another. Thus it seems pretty well 
ascertained that the lions from the Cape and Algeria have larger and finer 
manes than those from other districts. Gordon Cumming states that the 
manes and coats of lions inhabiting open, treeless districts, like the great 
Kalahari desert of South Africa, are fuller and handsomer than in those 
inhabiting forest districts. 

The relative sizes of the Indian and African lion are : Indian from 8 to 9 
feet, African -from 10 to 11 feet; females are about one foot shorter than the 
males. Weight, from 400 to' 600 pounds. 

The present range of the lion includes the whole continent of Africa, from 
Cape Colony to* Abyssinia and Algeria, although in many of the more civilized 
districts the animal is now greatly reduced in numbers, or even completely 
exterminated. In Asia it is found through Mesopotamia and South Persia 
to the northwestern districts of India, being nearly extinct in the latter country. 
Formerly the lion had a much larger range, extending westward into Syria 
and Arabia, and ranging over a considerable portion of Southeastern Europe, 
such as Roumania and Greece. Bones and teeth found in the caverns of 
Western Europe prove that lions once roamed over Germany, France, Italy, 
Spain and the British Isles. The ancient lions of Western Europe were 
exterminated, probably, by the cold of the glacial period; but the destruction 
of those infesting Eastern Europe and parts of Western Asia during the 
historic epoch was probably effected, at least to a considerable extent, by 
human agency. 

In South Africa lions are now scarce in the districts to' the southward of 
the Orange River, but are locally abundant in the regions farther north, such 
as Mashonaland. The lion is now quite unknown in Asia to the northward 
of India. The Arabs say it is found in Arabia; but of this we have at least 
no evidence. Occasionally it crosses the Euphrates, and a few years ago> a 
lion's carcass was brought into Damascus. Between the Lower Tigris and 
Euphrates they still abound. Mr. Layard saw them, frequently, and during' 
his excavations in the neighborhood of Babylon, found fresh traces of their 
footsteps almost daily among the ruins. It extends also far higher up, to' 
the jungle of the Khabour, or Chebar, on the upper Tigris,, above Mosul 
and Nineveh (the ancient Chebar), where Layard mentions an Arab being 
attacked by one, and escaping with the loss of his mare. 

Lions, which are very numerous in the reedy swamps bordering the Tigris 
and Euphrates, are found also' in the plains of Susiana, the modern Khuzistan, 
and extend into the mountain country south of Shiraz. There is no accurate 



THE STORY OF THE LION. 



113 



information of their northern limits, but Captain Pierson, who spent many 
years in the country between Tehran and Baghdad, says that he never heard 
of lions in the oak forest west of Karmanshah. It is the acorns of this same 
oak forest which feed the wild pigs whose presence tempts the lion into' the 
mountains of Fars. The little valley of Dashtiarjan, thirty-five miles west 
of Shiraz, is notorious for the number of lions found in its vicinity. Part 
of the valley is occupied by a fresh-water lake, on the edges of which are 
extensive beds of reeds ; the surrounding hills, which rise four thousand feet 
above the valley, itself six thousand five hundred feet above the sea, are 




LION CUBS AND THEIR HABITS. 



covered with oak forest, or with pretty thick brushwood of hawthorn, wild 
pear, and other bushes, and contain very extensive vineyards. Dashtiarjan 
is thus a perfect paradise for swine, and they increase and multiply accordingly, 
so that the lions have plenty to eat, varying the monotony. of constant pork 
with an occasional ibex, or with a calf from the herds which graze in the valley. 
Like most of the larger cats, lions are essentially nocturnal in their habits, 
and they are thus frequently only met with by chance in districts where, from 
the abundance of their tracks and from their nocturnal roarings, they are 
known to be plentiful. During the daytime they are accustomed to lie asleep 



114 THE STORY OF THE LION. 

in thick beds of reeds, where such are; to be found, or in drier districts, among 
thickets and bushes. 

The most likely places in the bush country in which to find lions, as far 
as my experience goes, are the rekabee thorns, the dense evergreens which 
line the rivers, and, during summer, the reeds on the margin of lagoons or 
vStreams, while in the open flats any patch of reeds or tall grass suffices to 
conceal them. The best chances for killing them are obtained in the first- 
mentioned spots, as you often come across them asleep when you are stealing 
about after game. From these and similar haunts, the lion issues forth at 
sundown to commence his nightly prowls; dark and stormy nights being 
those' on which he is most active, while he is more cautious during bright 
moonlight nights, especially as regards his visits to the drinking-places. 

Unlike most of his congeners, the lion is not a climber, and this general 
inability to ascend trees has saved the lives of many sportsmen and travelers, 
although not unfrequently at the cost of a long and thirsty waiting. 

From observing both lions and tigers in their native haunts I am of 
opinion that the former are bolder than the latter, while they are certainly 
far more noisy. The first peculiarity that struck me in the African lions was 
their noisiness. I have constantly been for months together in countries in 
India abounding in tigers without hearing their cry. Indeed, it is by no 
means a common sound in any Indian forest. Leopards, I should say, are 
much more frequently heard than tigers. The cry of the two animals, 
commonly known as roaring, though it is utterly different from the harsh 
growl of anger to which the term might most appropriately be applied, is 
very similar, and consists of several deep notes uttered rather quickly one 
after the other, and repeated at longer and shorter intervals. 

Very different impressions appear to be produced on different persons by 
the lion's roar, some listeners appearing to regard it as a rather commonplace 
and by no means awe-inspiring sound, while others, and we believe the majority, 
speak of it in far different terms. Such differences of impression must, it is 
obvious, be largely clue to personal disposition. 

Perhaps the lowest estimation of the lion's roar is that of Livingstone. 
He writes that "it is calculated to inspire fear when heard in a pitchy dark 
night amidst the tremendous peals of an African thunderstorm, and the vivid 
Hashes of lightning which leave on the eye the impression of stone-blindness, 
while the rain pouring down extinguishes the fire, and there is neither the 
protection of a tree nor a chance that your gun will go off. But when 
any one-is snug in a house or a wagon, the roar of the lion inspires no awe. 



THE STORY OF THE LION. 



115 



A European cannot distinguish between the note of a lion and that of an 
ostrich. In general the voice of the former seems to come deeper from the 
chest ; but to this day I can only pronounce with certainty from which of the 
two it proceeds, by knowing that the ostrich roars by day and the lion by 
night. The natives assert that they can detect a difference at the beginning 
of the sound." 

A recent writer, who is fully impressed with the grandeur of the lion's 
roar, is by no means disposed to admit the justness of its comparison to 




A TROOP OF LIONS SEEN IN SOUTH AFRICA. 



the voice of the ostrich. He observes that when a lion is "roaring loudly in 
concert with others at a short distance off, the sound is grand and awe-inspiring 
in the extreme ; in fact, I have never heard anything of a similar nature that 
can compare with it, for it is no exaggeration to' say that the ground actually 
trembles with the volume of sound. I say this unhesitatingly, for all that 
many people would have us believe to the contrary, maintaining that there 
is nothing in it, and endeavoring to> compare it to the 'booming' of the 
cock ostrich. At a great distance, and therefore, when heard indistinctly, 
the low, sullen roaring of a single lion has certainly much resemblance to 



116 THE STORY OF THE LION. 

the sound emitted by the ostrich during the pairing season; but persuade 
either the lion or the ostrich to come nearer, and one might then as well try- 
to compare the rumbling of cart wheels over a wooden bridge with the 
incessant roll of thunder among mountains. But a lion makes other sounds 
far more disconcerting — because usually only heard at close quarters — than 
that to which it gives vent when, in company with others, it has killed a head 
of game, or is retiring to its lair, full fed. There is the constant low growling 
of the lion crouching in cover, uncertain whether to' fight or to fly, as, with 
flattened ears and nervously twitching tail, he studies the situation, hoping 
by his attitude to' warn off the disturber of his solitude. There is the angry 
snarl of the lion disturbed at his meals, when his appetite is not yet satisfied, 
and when one has come upon him so suddenly as to give him no time to' 
clear off ; and, worse than all, the short, coughing grunts which often accom- 
pany a charge, and which startle the intruder in his domains as he bounds 
away. All these sounds are by no> means musical, and, whether heard by 
day or by night, are well calculated to try the nerves." Similar testimony 
as'to the impressiveness of the lion's roar is given by Gordon Cumming, who 
describes it as consisting at certain times of five or six repetitions of a low. 
deep moaning, ending off with a faint and scarcely audible sigh, while at 
others it takes the form of loud, deep-toned, solemn roars, quickly repeated, 
and increasing in intensity till the third or fourth, after which it gradually dies 
away in a succession of low muffled growlings, like the roll of distant thunder. 
Then, again, the veteran hunter Sir Samuel Baker gives his impressions in 
the following words : "There is nothing so beautiful or enjoyable to my 
ears as the roar of a lion on a still night, when everything is calm, and no 
sound disturbs the solitude except the awe-inspiring notes, like the rumble 
of distant thunder, as they die away into' the deepest bass. The first few 
notes somewhat resemble the bellow of a bull; these are repeated in slow 
succession four or five times, after which the voice is sunk into' a lower key, 
and a number of quick short roars are at length followed by rapid coughing 
notes, so deep and powerful that they seem to vibrate through the earth." 

This vibrating and reverberating sound alluded to> in the last sentence is 
intensified by the habit lions often have of putting their mouths close to' the 
ground while roaring; Livingstone mentioning an instance where a lion stood 
for hours roaring near his camp>, and making the sound reverberate in this 
manner. 

The intensity and grandeur of the sound must, however, be largely increased 
when, as is not unfrequently the case, a party of lions are heard roaring in 



THE STORY OF THE LION. 



117 



concert; and the din reaches its height when two or three troops of lions 
approach a watering-place at the same time. On such occasions every member 
O'f each troop sounds a bold roar of defiance at the opposite parties ; and when 
one roars all roar together, and each seems to vie with his comrades in the 
intensity and power of his voice. 

As a rule, lions commence to roar with the falling shades of evening, and 
continue with longer or shorter intervals throughout % the night ; but in secluded 
and undisturbed districts he has frequently heard the roaring sustained as 




THE MANELESS LION- OF SENEGAL. 



late as 9 or 10 o'clock in the morning on bright and sunny days. During 
cloudy and rainy weather they will however roar, although in a lower tone, 
throughout the day. 

Although in some districts lions are commonly met either alone, or in pairs 
of males and females, this does not seem to he generally the case in the 
interior of South Africa, where it is more usual to meet with four or five 
lions consorting together, while parties of from ten to twelve are by no* means 
rare. Such a party of twelve would, in the experience of the same observer, 
probably comprise about two adult males, three or four full-grown lionesses, 



ll8 THE STORY OF THE LION. 

and half a dozen large cubs, which, except for their somewhat slighter build, 
might easily be mistaken for mature females. On one occasion we came 
across a party consisting of a lion, three full-grown lionesses, and three small 
cubs; and if each of these females had possessed a pair of large cubs, such 
an assemblage would have been rightly termed a party of ten lions. It was 
probably such a party, although comprising more adult males, that Lord 
Randolph Churchill encountered during his recent journey in Mashonaland, 
when in company with his hunter Lee. "We were riding along," writes his 
lordship, "through a small open glade covered with high grass, Lee a few 
yards ahead of me, when I suddenly saw him turn round, cry out something 
to me, and point with his finger ahead. I looked, and saw lolloping along 
through and over the grass, about forty yards off, a yellow animal about as 
big as a small bullock. It flashed across me that it was a lion — the last 
thing in the world' that I was thinking of. I was going to- dismount and 
take aim, for I was not frightened at the idea of firing at a retreating lion, 
but Lee called out in succession five or six times, 'Look, look!' at the same 
time pointing with his finger in different directions in front. I saw, to my 
astonishment, and rather to my dismay, that the glade appeared to be alive with 
lions. There they were, trooping and trotting along ahead of us like a lot 
of enormous dogs — great yellow objects, offering such a sight as I had never 
dreamed of. Lee turned to me and said, 'What will you do?' I said, 'I 
suppose we must go after them,' thinking all the time that I was making 
a very foolish answer. This I am the more convinced of now, for Lee told me 
afterward that many old hunters in South Africa will turn away from such 
a troop of lions as we had before us. We trotted on after them a short 
distance to where the grass was more open, the lions trotting along ahead 
of us in the most composed and leisurely fashion, very different from the 
galloping off of a surprised and startled antelope." 

Lord Randolph Churchill himself counted no less than seven lions, while 
his hunter believed that there were several more in the party. 

When a male lion has selected a female partner the union very generally 
lasts for the greater portion or the entire lives of the pair. From the evidence 
of specimens kept in captivity it is known that from two to six cubs may be 
produced at a birth, at least in the captive condition. It is stated, however, 
that in India wild lionesses do not produce more than two or three cubs at 
a birth. When caught young, lions are easily tamed, and the whole disposi- 
tion of the animal in captivity is much more gentle than is that of the tiger. 

In Persia the staple food of the lion is the wild pigs that frequent the 



THE STORY OF THE LION. 



119 



oak forests to feed on acorns. In India, the lion usually feeds on deer, 
antelope, wild pigs, cattle, horses, donkeys and camels. In Africa, they prey 
upon antelopes, zebras, quaggas, buffaloes and giraffes. 

Were a zebra, a fat rhinoceros and a fat buffalo to be killed and left out 
it is probable that they would be eaten in the^-order I have named. Soft 
succulent fat is what the lion probably considers most toothsome, and zebras 
supply this in a higher degree than any other animal, save the rhinoceros 
and the hippopotamus, neither of which it is able to kill; but on the other 
hand, the zebra confines itself to the open, as far as possible, never approaches 
within springing distance of a- thicket, and rarely, unless when going to> water, 
gives the lion a chance. Buffaloes, on the other hand, are nearly always 




LION CUBS THAT LOOK LIKE LAMBS. 



in and close to cover, presenting continual opportunities for a successful 
stalk ; and though the danger in attacking them is much greater, as is proved 
by the no means rare instances of lions being maimed, and even killed in 
such contests, yet for the above reason they form their chief food. 

It must not, however, be supposed that lions by any means restrict them- 
selves to the flesh of animals which have fallen to their own attacks. In 
addition to eating the flesh of animals recently killed by hunters, lions will 
also prey upon carcasses in an advanced state of decomposition. When 
elephants have been shot, lions will prey upon the carcasses as they lie festering 



120 THE STORY OF THE LION. 

in the rays of a tropical sun, returning night after night to the feast, until 
no more meat is left. This occurs in parts of the country abounding in game, 
where it would give a party of lions but little trouble or exertion to catch a 
zebra, buffalo, or antelope, and procure themselves a meal of fresh meat. 
In the same way, no matter how plentiful game may be, lions will almost 
invariably feast upon any dead animal left by the hunter, from a buffalo to a 
steinbuck, that they may happen to come across. 

Near villages, when lions grow too old to- be able to take game for them- 
selves, they will take to killing goats ; while women or children who happen 
to come in their way at night also become victims. On the other hand, when 
far away from human -habitations, such decrepit lions catch mice and other 
small rodents, and will even at times eat grass, although this may be taken 
medicinally. 

That such lions, which have become too feeble to prey upon game, would 
naturally develop into "man-eaters" if they were permitted to live, appears 
highly probable. The absence of man-eating lions in parts of Africa is due 
to the superior boldness of the African natives over those of India, for even 
among the least martial tribes of South Africa, if two or three people are 
killed by a lion, the population of the surrounding country is roused, and, a 
party being formed, the lion is usually surrounded and stabbed to death with 
assegais ; while among such warlike stribes as the Matabele, if a lion only kills 
an ox, or even a goat, its fate is usually sealed, or even if not killed, it gets 
such a scare that it is glad to quit the district. Such a thing as a man-eater, 
or even an habitual cattle-slayer, would never be tolerated for an instant. 

My shooting experiences in eastern South Africa, in the districts of Zulu- 
land, Tongaland, and Swaziland, show that man-eating lions are to be met 
with in some regions. I became an accessory to the death of two such man- 
eaters, one of which had well-nigh depopulated a district, having killed between 
thirty and forty individuals ; while the second, although dwelling in an unin- 
habited country full of game, had become notorious for its attacks upon the 
camps of the hunters. The former, indeed, appeared to be an animal in the 
full enjoyment of bodily strength, as it is said to have habitually leaped over 
the high fences which surround the Zulu villages. 

With regard to the method in which lions kill and carry off the larger 
animals upon which _ they prey, it may be observed, in the first place, that 
there is some doubt whether death is effected by dislocating the neck of the 
victim, as is always done by tigers. In a cow killed by a lion in Abyssinia 
the vertebrae of the neck were not dislocated ; and I saw a lioness hold \l 



THE STORY OF THE LION. 



121 



camel for several minutes without attempting to break its neck. I have seen 
a horse, a young elephant and two antelopes killed by a bite in the throat; 
while I have also known instances of horses and zebras being killed by a bite 
on the back of the neck behind the head. Buffaloes are sometimes killed by 
a dislocation of the neck, which is effected by the lion springing onto their 
shoulders, and then seizing their noses with one paw, giving the neck a sudden 
wrench. 

It was formerly a prevalent notion that lions were in the habit of carrying 




A PLAYFUL OLD LION. 



off the carcasses of large animals, like oxen and buffaloes, by throwing them 
over their back and walking bodily away with them. All recent observers 
are, however, agreed that this is by no means a correct statement, and that 
their invariable practice is to transport such carcasses by dragging them along 
the ground. A South African lion would be quite incapable of lifting a 
buffalo from the ground, much less of leaping over a fence with it, as the 
lion of North Africa has been alleged to do. In referring to an instance of 



122 THE STORY OF THE LION. 

this nature when a North African lion was reported to have leaped over the 
thorn fence which formed a protection to a camp, and, after seizing a full- 
grown ox, bounded back with its victim, Sir Samuel Baker writes as follows : 
"In the confusion of a night attack the scare is stupendous, and no person 
would be able to declare that he actually saw the lion jump the fence with 
the bullock in its grip. It might appear to do this, but the ox would struggle 
violently, and in this struggle it would most probably burst through the fence, 
and subsequently be dragged away by the lion. * * * It is quite a mistake 
to suppose that a lion can carry a full-grown ox ; it will partially lift the fore- 
quarter, and drag the carcass along the ground." 

It is stated that the usual pace of a lion when undisturbed is a walk, but even 
then, from the length of his stride, he gets over the ground quicker than appears 
to be the case. When going more rapidly I have never seen a lion bound, but 
they come along at a clumsy gallop, somewhat after the manner of a dog, get- 
ting over the ground very quickly. 

In regard to* the ferocity or otherwise of the lion's disposition, very con- 
flicting statements will be found in the writings of different observers. Thus, 
whereas Livingstone states that nothing would lead him to attribute to the 
lion either the ferocious or noble character ascribed to it by others, Sir Samuel 
Baker is disposed to take a rather opposite view, observing that, although he 
does not consider the lion to be either so formidable or so ferocious as the 
tiger, yet there is no reason for despising an animal which has been respected 
from the most remote antiquity. 

All writers appear, however, to be agreed that, as a general rule (although 
there are exceptions), a lion will not go out of his way to make an unprovoked 
attack upon human beings, and that, in point of fact, he will rather shun a 
conflict when possible. "There is nearly always," writes Mr. Drummond, 
"some explanation of its behavior when it acts otherwise; either the hunter 
has approached so near before being discovered that the animal is afraid to 
turn tail, and, urged by its very fears, makes a charge; or it may be half-fam- 
ished, and having got hold of some prey, either of your killing or its own, will 
not quit it without a contest ; or, if a lioness with cubs, will fight in defense of 
their supposed danger." Sir Samuel Baker's testimony is of a very similar 
character, when he mentions that the expert swordsmen of Central Africa have 
no dread of the lion when undisturbed by sportsmen, although they hold him 
in the highest respect when he becomes the object of chase. Again, in another 
passage, the same writer mentions that among the Hamran Arabs of the 
Sudan the lions, although numerous, are never regarded as dangerous. 



THE STORY OF THE LION. 



123 



That lions, especially when hungry, will, however, on occasion attack 
human beings, — on foot or when mounted, — there is abundant evidence. A 
hunter engaged in stalking a rhinosceros, on looking back was horrified 
to find that he himself was being stalked by a lion. There was but one time 
in my career when a lion, driven by hunger, attacked me personally; but I 
believe' that there are some lions which will always make unprovoked attacks. 
This view is supported by an account of an attack made upon three natives in 
Eastern Africa. The three natives in question were passing along the edge of 
a certain lagoon, when, without further warning than a slight rustle, a lion 




THE KING OF BEASTS DRINKING AT A POOL. 



sprang upon the foremost, crushing him to the ground. His terrified com- 
rades, throwing away the chance of shooting the brute while it was still upon 
its first victim and its eyes probably closed, rushed to the nearest trees for 
safety, but, once there, feeling ashamed of their cowardly desertion of an 
old companion, they descended, and walking forward together were just on 
the point of firing, when, with a roar that almost deprived them of the power 
to run, the lion charged, caught the hindmost, and after shaking him for a 



124 



THE STORY OF THE LION. 



second or two, gave chase to the other, who, however, had profited by the time 
to remove himself, by a bare foot or so, out of reach of the spring the enraged 
animal gave as it saw that one had so far escaped. It then returned to> its last 
victim, not yet dead, took him up in its mouth, dropped him, tossed him from 
paw to paw as a cat does a mouse, and at last, as if wearied by so much unac- 
customed gentleness, it allowed its savage nature to gain the mastery, and with 
one crunch of its powerful jaw put him out of his pain." The sole survivor 
of this tragedy, after having been besieged for hours in a tree, during which 




SIR EDWIN LANDSEER'S WORLD FAMOUS PAINTING OF A LION. 



he had a hairbreadth escape when descending to reach his gun, finally had the 
satisfaction of putting a bullet through the ribs of the lion. 

Lion-hunting, under any circumstances, must of necessity be a dangerous 
pursuit ; but it may be followed to a certain extent with comparative immunity 
from harm by those who have the necessary nerve and coolness, coupled with 
sufficient knowledge of the habits of the animals. I consider the lion a far 
more dangerous animal .to encounter than any other creature in South Africa. 
It is true, indeed, that a much greater number of casualties occur from 
buffalo-shooting than in lion-hunting, but for every lion that has of late years 



THE STORY OF THE LION. 



125 



been "bagged" in the interior of South Africa, at least fifty buffaloes have been 
laid low. As a general rule the danger is reduced to a minimum when hunting 
with dogs, as the lion's attention is generally concentrated on his canine foes ; 
but even then it sometimes happens that he will dash straight through them 
to attack the hunter. A mounted hunter, except when the movements of his 
horse are impeded by thick forest or by yielding sand, can generally escape 
when pursued, as the pace of the average lion is not „ sufficient to' enable him to 
overtake the average horse. If, however, on foot, and without dogs, though 
there is little danger in attacking lions in the first instance, yet to follow up 




A PERFECT SPECIMEN OF A FULL-GROWN LION. 



a wounded one is very ticklish work, especially in long grass or thick cover, 
for there is probably no animal of its size in the world that can conceal itself 
behind so slight a screen, or rush upon its pursuer with such lightning-like 
rapidity. 

It should always be recollected, before meddling with lions, that if you 
do come to close quarters with them, death is the probable result. There are 
cases within my own knowledge where, single-handed and armed only with 
a spear, a native has succeeded in killing one that has sprung upon him, without 
receiving in return anything but trifling injuries; but these are only excep- 



126 THE STORY OF THE LION. 

tions that prove the rule that when they strike they kill. * * * It is a grand 
sight to see one charge a native regiment sent out after it, as they sometimes 
are, springing over the heads of the first line right into the center, flying about, 
knocking men down with every blow, until, a complete sieve of assegai wounds, 
it dies fighting. 

The lion tries to avoid man until wounded, and it is only in exceptional 
cases of there being young ones to guard, or from astonishment at seeing the 
hunter so close to them, that they charge when being tracked. They charge 
with the same coughing roar that a tiger does, and come at great speed close 
to the. ground, not bounding in the air as they are represented in pictures. 
Their ears are pressed close to the head, giving them the comical appearance 
of being without ears. So large an animal coming at full speed against you 
of course knocks you off your legs. The claws and teeth entering the flesh 
do not hurt so much as you would think. The only really painful part of the 
business is the squeeze given by the jaws on the bone. I felt none of the 
dreamy stupor Livingstone describes, but, on the contrary, felt as usual. I 
adopted the course of lying quite still, which, I believe, is the best thing one 
can do, as you are quite helpless with a heavy animal on you, and they are 
inclined to make grabs at everything that moves, and the fewer bites you can 
get off with the better. 

Twice in my life I have escaped death by the ruse of feigning death when 
in the power of a lion, but I know of no> other situation in which a man can 
be placed which requires as much nerve and control of the muscles. Imagine 
a great brute nosing and sniffing every part of your body from your head to 
feet; imagine feeling its hot breath or the saliva from its dripping jaws upon 
your face, while you know that to stir or give any sign of life means instant 
death, and you will have some idea how a hunter feels when at the mercy of 
the king of beasts. 




THE STORY OF THE 

MOUNTAIN LION. 



Many a young hunter in the Rocky Mountains has been startled out of a 
sound sleep by a wild, unearthly cry unlike any other sound of the forest. 

"What's that?" he would ask, listening to 1 catch a, repetition of the sound. 

"Go to sleep,'' replies the old hunter, who is his companion; "that's only a 
painter, — what most people call a mountain lion. They won't bother us; go 
to sleep.". 

The mountain lion is the largest representative of the cat family in Amer- 
ica. It is often called the panther, a word the old-time hunters corrupted into 
painter. Some works on natural history give it the name of cougar, but I 
prefer the name given it by the Peruvians — Puma, which has been adopted by 
all American zoologists. 

In regard to the dimensions of the puma, it is stated that a male preserved 
in the museum at Washington has a total length (measured along the curves 
of the body) of 6 feet "]\ inches, of which 2 feet 2.\ inches are occupied by the 
tail. A large male killed in Arizona measured 7 feet in total length, of which 
3 feet was occupied by the tail ; while a smaller male from the same locality 
had a total length of only 6 feet, of which the tail took up 1 foot 11 inches. 
The largest individual of which the measurements can be regarded as authen- 

127 



128 



THE STORY OF THE MOUNTAIN LION. 



ticated was one killed in Texas in the year 1846, of which the total length 
was 8 feet 2 inches, the length of the tail being 3 feet 1 inch. A stuffed speci- 
men measures 9 feet 1 inch in total length. I believe that the length may in 
some instances be as much as 1 1 feet. 

In the parts of South America where cattle and horses are largely bred 
the puma is a terrible scourge. Indeed, so partial is it to horse-flesh, that in 




MOUNTAIN LION, TREED. 



some parts of Patagonia it is almost impossible to breed horses owing to the 
destruction of their colts. An instance is related of a puma springing on a colt 
among a drove in charge of a driver, and killing it so suddenly by dislocation 
of the neck that the unfortunate animal was actually dead before it fell to the 
ground. It further appears that in districts where pumas abound the semi- 
wild horses of South America can scarcely maintain their existence, owing to 
the slaughter of their colts. The puma does not, however, confine its ravages 



THE STORY OF THE MOUNTAIN LION. 



129' 



on horses to the colts, but will also< attack and kill full-grown adults. The 
same is true for cattle, among which calves more generally, and cows rarely, 
fall victims to the puma's rapacity. Horned cattle are, however, less preferred 
than sheep, which, next to horse-flesh, forms its favorite food in pastoral dis- 
tricts. Indeed, so partial are pumas to> mutton, that one has been known to 
make use of a calf-pen as a place of concealment from which to raid on a sheep- 
fold, passing through the former without offering to molest its tenants. 




A PERFECT SPECIMEN OF MOUNTAIN LION. 



The acme of daring on the part of the South American puma is, however, 
reached in the attacks which it makes upon the jaguar; and it appears that 
in North America the puma exhibits an equally marked hostility to the grizzly 
bear. In these respects the puma is undoubtedly entitled to be regarded as one 
of the boldest and fiercest of carnivores in proportion to its size. 

I once, and once only, killed a puma, and nothing will induce me to kill 
another. On the occasion referred to a puma was found, which sat perfectly 
still with its back against a stone, not even moving when lassoed. I dis- 



130 THE STORY OF THE MOUNTAIN LION. 

mounted, and drawing my knife, advanced to. kill it ; still the puma made no 
attempt to- free itself from the lasso, but it seemed to know what was coming, 
for it began, to tremble, the tears ran from its eyes, and it whined in the most 
pitiful manner. I killed it as it sat there unresisting before me; but, after 
accomplishing the deed, felt that I had committed a murder. If this were an 
isolated case, it would not be of much importance, but scores of instances attest 
that this strange and inexplicable behavior is characteristic of the South Ameri- 
can puma, and that it almost invariably resigns itself to' death in this unresist- 
ing manner. Very different is, however, the behavior of the puma when 
attacked by a hunter accompanied by dogs. At such times, the animal is 
roused to the fiercest paroxysms of rage ; and with hair erect and eyes flash- 
ing like balls of lurid fire, it rushes spitting and snarling on the dogs, utterly 
regardless of the presence of the hunter. So thoroughly indeed is the hunter 
ignored on such occasions, that he may actually belabor the puma on the head 
with a cudgel without drawing its attack upon himself; the animal receiving 
such blows without retaliation, and calmly waiting its opportunity of making 
a rush upon the dogs. 

Strange as it may at first sight appear, the pumas of the Adirondacks were 
wont to prey largely upon the porcupines which are found in abundance in 
that wilderness, and individuals were frequently killed with their mouths and 
lips, and sometimes other portions of their bodies, absolutely bristling with 
the quills of porcupines. Whether, however, these animals were selected as 
an article of food from choice, or whether the pumas were driven to devour 
them from inability to capture other prey, is uncertain. Be this as it may, 
porcupines are creatures which, from their sluggish habits and contempt of 
ordinary foes, may be easily captured, and would be sure to come in the way of 
the puma during its nocturnal wanderings. The North American puma will 
eat dmost anything, from deer down to rats, mice, fish and even snails. 



THE AFRICAN BUFFALO 



The Delights of the Buffalo Hunt as Experienced by Mr. Roosevelt and Other Sports- 
men — His First Encounter with This Ferocious Animal — The Story of the 
Buffalo. 



Mr. Roosevelt found the African buffalo to be a much more cunning 
and dangerous animal than his Rocky Mountain namesake, with whom he 
formed acquaintance during the early years of his life as a ranchman and 
hunter in the great American West. When pursued the African buffalo 




BUFFALO HUNTERS IN EAST AFRICA. 



From photograph. 

would run away at a considerable distance and hide behind some huge trunk 
to suddenly spring on the approaching unsuspecting hunter, whose only salva- 
tion lies in a sure aim and cool presence of mind. 

The above illustration represents a company of officials and famous hunters 
in the Kilimanjaro district, through which Roosevelt passed by the Uganda 
Railroad, on his way from Mombasa to Kapiti Plains. In the foreground 

131 



132 THE AFRICAN BUFFALO. 

there are two splendid heads of wild buffalo, which have just been killed in 
the regions around Africa's highest mountain peak. 

Next to the lion the buffalo is the most dangerous African game. During 
the last fifty years hundreds of hunters have lost their lives in its pursuit 
and dozens are annually mauled to death under its powerful horns. 

The full-grown male African buffaloes, which Mr. Roosevelt hunted, stood 
five feet eight inches high at the shoulders and were up to twelve feet in 
length. Unlike the American bisons, they are hunchless and straight backed, 
have short and small heads and a square muzzle, shaped like that of our ox. 
Our ex-President found them to be the most cunning and cautious of all 
African wild beasts. They live in large herds and thrive excellently all over 
British East Africa. Their charge is so violent as to carry everything before 
them. An enraged buffalo goes through the densest jungle like an auto- 
mobile and nothing can check his furious onslaught. The safest way, there- 
fore, is to kill him before he has time to charge. In fact, two of the first 
four buffaloes Mr. Roosevelt bagged had no time to charge at all, and the 
other two were speedily dispatched just as they were about to start. 

Some years ago the buffalo was on the list of protected animals, but this 
resulted in its becoming so numerous as to be a veritable pest, destroying the 
crops of the farmers and even threatening the lives of the natives. It now 
is counted as vermin and may be killed at will. There is no danger, however, 
of its being exterminated, for the British Government has created an exten- 
sive game reserve on both sides of the Uganda Railroad, where thousands 
of wild buffaloes are allowed to thrive unmolested, and from where the 
surrounding country is constantly supplied with fresh stock. 

The first buffalo shot by Colonel Roosevelt in East Africa was of the 
typical African species, about six feet high at the shoulders, having upward 
curving horns with a spread of seven- feet, and bluish-black coat. 

. His achievements as a hunter have been record-breaking, for his first three 
months' efforts yielded forty-two big head of game, among which were five 
large buffaloes, and last fall the bag tallied 104 animals, of which sixty-nine 
fell before the unerring aim of the father's rifle and thirty-five at the crack 
of the son's weapon. Still he does not kill more than he has to, his aim being 
to supply our National Museum with valuable specimens and not to satisfy 
a personal desire for exciting adventures. 

"I regret very much the criticism and claim of wanton slaughter of ani- 
mals, which I have heard has come from America," he said to an American 
newspaper man who recently returned from East Africa, "because I have 



THE AFRICAN BUFFALO. 



133 



only been killing one specimen and no more, except in the case of the lions, 
a pest: to humanity. In the case of the lions I have received the heartiest 
thanks of the people of the neighborhood in which I have killed the beasts. 

"I am not a good shot," the famous hunter said to the correspondent, with 
characteristic modesty, "but I shoot often." 

The same statement was also made to the two experienced hunters, Selous 




A VISIT FOR THE EXCHANGE OF PRESENTS. 



and Cunninghame, who accompany the safari, and both met it with the most 
emphatic contradiction. Mr. Roosevelt's marvelous game record also shows 
that his hits are much more frequent than his misses. 

The people of the land, natives «*s well as European settlers, were amazed 
at the energy of the former President. The individual members of the cara- 
van were often marched to death and anxious to quit. They therefore em- 



134 THE AFRICAN BUFFALO. 

braced every opportunity to halt and take some rest. Such an occasion was 
the visit the chief of the war-like Wakamba tribe, accompanied by his 
warriors, made to the camp. These savages still adhere to their primitive 
custom of bringing presents to visitors, expecting, of course, more valuable 
ones in return. The Wakamba is the only native tribe that has succeeded 
in maintaining its independence against their neighbors, the ferocious Masai 
people, whose territory extends to the Mt. Kenia region, only two days' march 
from the beautiful Juja farm, where Mr. Roosevelt was so hospitably enter- 
tained by his American friend, Mr. McMillan and his family. Our illustration 
shows a company of Masai camping at the foot of the mountain. These war- 
like savages subsist only upon milk and blood of their herds of cattle. When 
a caravan is on safari in the neighborhood the Masai women will come down 
at sunrise to fetch fresh milk for the camp and sing to the whole power of 
their beings the same sort of a good-wish song, -for all which presents are 
usually expected. 

While the name by which the animal is generally known is buffalo, the cor- 
rect name is bison, but the name buffalo has been in vogue for so long that it 
will no doubt continue to be used, while there are any of the animals left. 

We now proceed to give our readers some further interesting details as 
to the habits and nature of the buffalo. 

Of all the quadrupeds that have ever lived upon the earth, probably no 
other species has ever marshaled such innumerable hosts as those of the Ameri- 
can buffalo. It would have been as easy to count or to estimate the number 
of leaves in a forest as to calculate the number of buffalo living- at any given 
time during the history of the species previous to 1870. Even in South Central 
Africa, which has been exceedingly prolific in great herds of game, it is prob- 
able that all its quadrupeds taken together on an equal area would never have 
more than equaled the total number of buffalo* in this country forty years ago. 
As an instance of these enormous numbers, it appears that, in the early part 
of the year 1871, Col. Dodge, when passing through the great herd on the 
Arkansas, and reckoning that there were some fifteen or twenty individuals to 
the acre, states from his own observation that it was not less than twenty-five 
miles wide and fifty miles deep. This, however, was the last of the great 
herds, and the number of individuals comprising it could not be reckoned at 
less than four millions. Many writers at and about the date mentioned speak 
of the plains being absolutely black with buffalo as far as the eye could reach. 
One man passed through a herd for a distance of upwards of one hundred and 
twenty miles right on end, in traveling on the Kansas Pacific railroad. Fre- 



THE STORY OF THE BUFFALO. 



135 



quently, indeed, trains on that line were derailed in attempting to pass through 
herds of buffalo, until the engineers learned it was advisable to bring their 
engines to a standstill when they found the line blocked in this manner. 

When I was on the Arkansas river in 1867 the whole country appeared one 
great mass of buffalo moving slowly to the northward ; and it was only when 
actually among them that it could be ascertained that the apparently solid mass 
was an agglomeration of numerous small herds, of from fifty to two hundred 
animals, separated from the surrounding herds by greater or less space, but still' 




A FAMILY OF AMERICAN BUFFALO OR BISON. 



separated. The buffalo on the hills, seeing an unusual object in their rear, 
started at full speed directly towards me, stampeding and bringing with them 
the numberless herds through which they passed, and pouring down upon all 
the herds, noi longer separated, but one immense compact mass of plunging 
animals. 

In their periodical journeys across the country in search of water regular 
tracks were formed by the buffalo, and as the water was approached several 



136 THE STORY OF THE BUFFALO. 

tracks united, with the result that in some places tracks of about twelve inches 
in width, and from a foot to two feet in depth, may be seen following the level 
of the valleys; the buffalo in these journeys having always marched in single 
file. These old buffalo^-tracks still remain as a memento* of a vanished race, 
and are now used by the domestic cattle which have supplanted the monarchs 
of the prairie. After reaching the watering-place, the herd, instead of return- 
ing to its original feeding-ground, would wander. right and left in search of 
fresh pastures. When undisturbed in good pasture, buffalo* were always in 
the habit of lying down for a few hours during the middle of the day; and 
they were at certain seasons fond of rolling either in dust or mud. In dis- 
tricts where salt lakes occurred, the buffalo' would resort to them in great 
numbers. All the great herds were in the habit of moving southwards for 
a distance of from two hundred to four hundred miles with the approach of 
winter; and during such journeys it frequently happened that numbers were 
lost in crossing quick-sands, alkali-bogs, muddy fords, or on treacherous ice. 
It is stated that in 1867 upwards of two> thousand buffalo out of a herd of 
four thousand were lost in a quicksand ; and that an entire herd of about one 
hundred head perished when crossing the ice on a lake in Minnesota. 

.1 have seen buffalo^ boldly face the cutting blizzards of the Northwest, 
instead of turning tail to them after the manner of domestic cattle; although 
they would at the same time seek such shelter as might be obtainable by retir- 
ing to the ravines and valleys. In heavy falls of snow, which lay long on 
the ground, the buffalo were often compelled to fast for days, or even weeks, 
together; but they suffered most when the surface of the snow was covered 
with a thin crust of ice after a slight thaw, as their ponderous weight would 
drive their feet deep into' the snow, and leave them at the mercy of the Indians, 
by whom they were slain by hundreds when thus helpless. 

The method of stalking, or "still-hunting," where the hunter creeps up to a 
herd and shoots one after another of its members, appears to' be one the most 
deadly modes of hunting the buffalo*, owing to> the crass stupidity of the animals 
themselves. The plan adopted was first to shoot the leader, when the remainder 
of the herd would come and stupidly smell round the body, till another animal 
assumed the post of leader, and was shot down when it was about to* make 
a move; the same process being repeated almost without end. Riding down, 
surrounding, impounding, or hunting in snow-shoes were, however, other 
equally effective methods of destruction. 

In captivity the American buffalo* breeds freely, not only with its own kind, 
but also with other species of cattle. In the United States a herd has been 



THE STORY OF THE BUFFALO. 



137 



established by crossing bull buffalo with domestic cows; the buffalo cow not 
producing a hybrid offspring. This hybrid race is perfectly fertile, either with 
itself or when again crossed with domestic cattle ; and it is considered that a 
strain of buffalo-blood will lead to> the cattle in the Northwestern states being 
better enabled to withstand the blizzards of those districts. 

In general the buffalo* has no reason to fear any of the other animals that 
frequent the regions it inhabits, for if an individual should be attacked, the 




AMERICAN BUFFALOES, SHOWING METHODS OF HUNTING THEM. 



bulls rally to its assistance, and compel the assailant to flee before the blows 
which they inflict with their armed heads. It is only when wounded by the 
Indian's arrow, or by the bullet of the white man's rifle, or else from becom- 
ing sick from any cause, that this great beast falls a victim to its four-footed 
enemies. The cunning white wolf is the one it has most to dread ; for these 
stealthy, thick-coated Arabs of the prairies soon ascertain when a buffalo is in 



138 THE STORY OF THE BUFFALO. 

feeble condition, and, banding together, easily pull it to the ground and tear 
it to pieces. But the buffalo does not succumb to its foes without an effort 
to preserve its fast-ebbing life. Bold and gallant to the last, staggering to his 
sole remaining spot of vantage ground, the feeble knees bending beneath the 
weight of the mighty body — weak with loss of blood, yet still unconquered — 
the noble bull tosses his fierce-looking head and bids defiance to his lurking 
foes. With eager, bloodshot eyes, and the keen white fangs glistening in their 
powerful jaws, the wolves set on him from every side. By sudden springs they 
seize and tear his flesh with their sharp teeth, darting away too quickly to be 
injured by horn or hoof. Vain are his efforts to reach the nimble assailants, 
until, summoning all his remaining strength, he rushes upon one that, more 
daring than the rest x attacks him in front, and even in the act of trampling 
him down, falls upon the body of his prostrate foe, too feeble to carry out the 
unequal combat. Never will he rise again, for instantly the angry wolves 
fairly swarm upon him, and soon nothing will be left to tell of the mighty 
buffalo but a well picked skeleton whitening in the summer sun. 

Mounted on a swift horse, and armed with a spear and bow and arrows, 
the Indians killed great numbers of these animals. They rode up close to the 
buffalo, and with the greatest apparent ease buried an arrow up to its feather in 
the creature's body. Indeed many instances are known where the slight Indian 
bow, drawn without any perceptible effort, has thrown the arrow completely 
through the body of the huge animal. Many modes of destroying this animal 
were in vogue among the Indians and white settlers. The skin was so valuable 
that every exertion was made to procure it. Of the buffalo's hide they made 
their wigwams or tents, their shields, their robes, their shoes, etc. The Indians 
could also sell the hides to the traders for a considerable sum, so that an Indian 
would almost measure his importance and wealth by the number o'f hides that 
he took. 

Their ferocity of appearance was not evident in the buffaloes' true nature, 
for their disposition was sluggish and fearful. Endowed with the smallest 
possible amount of instinct, the little the buffalo has seems adapted rather for 
getting him into difficulties than out of them. If not alarmed at the sight or 
smell of a foe, he will stand stupidly gazing at his companions in their death- 
throes, until the whole herd is shot down. He will walk unconsciously in a 
quicksand or quagmire already choked with struggling, dying victims. Hav- 
ing made up his mind to go a certain way, it is almost impossible to swerve 
him from his purpose. 

The flesh of the buffalo is tolerable eating, but the "hump" is unapproach- 



THE STORY OF THE BUFFALO. 



139 



able in delicacy. It is exceedingly tender, and possesses the property of not 
cloying even when eaten in excess. The fat is devoid of that sickening rich- 
ness which is usually met with in our domesticated animals. 

The cow is smaller than the bull, and considerably swifter. She is also 
generally in better condition and fatter than her mate, and in consequence the 
hunters who went to "get meat" always selected the cows from the herd. 

The principal use of the flesh of the buffalo was to make "jerked meat" of 
it. This is made by cutting the meat into long, narrow slips, and drying 









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EUROPEAN BUFFALOES FIGHTING. 



them in the sun. There is a peculiar art in cutting these slips. The operator 
takes a large lump of the flesh, and holding his knife firmly in one hand, presses 
the meat against its edge with the other, continually turning it round and 
round, until the whole piece is converted into one long strip. The strips thus 
prepared are pegged out on stakes, as washerwomen peg their clothes, or sus- 
pended in festoons on the branches of trees, like red snakes, until they are dry 
enough to be packed up. Three days is considered sufficient for the purpose. 
The cow is preferred to the bull for conversion into jerked meat, while the 



140 THE STORY OF THE BUFFALO. 

skin of the bull is more valuable than that of the cow, from the mass of woolly 
hair about the shoulders. 

THE INDIAN BUFFALO. 

The Indian buffalo has been domesticated and is extensively employed 
as a beast of burden by the Hindoos. It has also been introduced into several 
of the adjoining countries. The animal is about the size of a full-grown 
ox and is harnessed and driven in a manner similar to that our forefathers 
used with the ox. This species has enormous curved horns, some measuring 
12 and 14 feet from tip to tip. 

In a wild state the Indian buffalo is only known in the country from which 
it takes its name, the herds which are found in a wild state in Burma and 
the Malay Peninsula and adjacent islands being not improbably descended 
from animals escaped from captivity. 

In India wild buffaloes are found on the plains of the Bramaputra and 
Ganges, from the eastern end of Assam to Tirhut ; they also occur in the "terai" 
land at the foot of the Himalaya. Domesticated buffaloes are found not only 
over the whole of India and Burma, and the greater part of the Malayan 
region, but have likewise been introduced into Asia Minor, Egypt and Italy. 

The haunts of the wild Indian buffalo are the tall grass- jungles found 
in many parts of the plains of India, and generally in the neighborhood of 
swamps; but it may be also found more rarely in the open plains of short 
grass, or among low jungle, and occasionally even in forest. Those who 
have never had the opportunity of seeing an Indian grass- jungle can have but 
little conception of its height and density, but some idea may be formed oi ; 
it from the fact that in such cover, although a herd of buffaloes may be roused 
within a score of yards, the waving of the grass, and perhaps the glint of a 
polished horn-tip, is the only ocular evidence of the presence of the animals ; 
the probably nearly noiseless rush might be caused by other animals; and 
where the horns have not been seen it is only by the strong, sweet bovine 
scen t — similar to but much more powerful than that of cows — that one can 
be absolutely certain of what is in front of one. In such jungles shooting 
on foot is out of the question, and the only method of procedure is by beating 
with a line of elephants. 

In their wild state these buffaloes are always found in herds, which may 
comprise fifty or more individuals. They feed chiefly on grass, in the evening, 
at night, and in the morning; and lie down, generally in high grass, not 



THE STORY OF THE BUFFALO. 



141 



unfrequently in a marsh, during the day ; they are by no means shy, nor do 
they appear to shun the neighborhood of man, and they commit great havoc 
among growing crops. Sometimes a herd or a solitary bull will take posses- 
sion of a field and keep off the men who> own it. A bull not unfrequently 
attacks without provocation, though (probably on the principle that a council 




THE ARNEE BUFFALO OF ASSAM. 



of war never fights) a herd, although all will gallop to within a short distance 
of an intruder and make most formidable demonstrations, never, I believe, 
attacks any one who does not run away from them. A wounded animal 
of either sex often charges, and has occasionally been known to knock an 
elephant down. Buffaloes retain their courage in captivity, and a herd will 



142 



THE STORY OF THE BUFFALO. 



attack a tiger or other dangerous animal without hesitation, and, although 
gentle with those they know and greatly attached to them, they are inclined 
to be hostile to strange men and strange animals. 

In earlier times the buffalo was common throughout Europe, but the 
advance of civilization there as in this country later drove the animal back, 
until the present time it is restricted to> a few of the most inaccessible mountain 
regions. 




COMMON INDIAN BUFFALO. 



The buffalo now living in Lithuania are specially protected by the Russian 
Government and are under the charge of a staff of keepers, but those of the 
Caucasus are thoroughly wild. Although living at a greater altitude, and 
thus exposed to a more intense cold, the buffalo of the Caucasus are less 
thickly haired than are those of Lithuania. Buffalo' were abundant in the 
Black Forest in the time of Julius Caesar, and as late as the ninth and tenth 



THE STORY OF THE BUFFALO. 



143 



centuries were sufficiently numerous in parts of Switzerland, and Germany 
to be used as food. In a recent summary of the history of the species I found 
that up to 1500 the European buffalo seems to have been common in Poland, 
where it was looked upon as royal game, and hunted in right royal manner 
by the king and nobility, as many as two thousand or three thousand beaters 
being employed to drive the game. 




CAPE BUFFALOES. 



In spite of their size and bulk, the European buffalo are active animals, 
and can both trot and gallop with considerable speed. In galloping the head 
is carried close to the ground and the tail high in the air. Generally they 
are sly and retiring in disposition, but in Lithuania an old bull has been 
known to take possession of a road and challenge all comers. The female dis- 



144 THE STORY OF THE BUFFALO. 

plays great courage in defending its offspring against bears and wolves, and 
cows often sacrifice their lives in behalf of their calves. 

THE CAPE BUFFALO. 

The Cape buffalo is a native of South Africa. It is exceedingly ferocious 
and cunning, often lurking among the trees until an unsuspecting traveler 
approaches, and then rushing on him and destroying him. The ferocious 
creature is not content with killing its victim, but stands over him mangling 
him with its horns, and stamping on him with its feet. 

The Cape buffalo has but two enemies — the lion and man; and the com- 
bined assaults of these two< have in some districts so reduced its numbers that 
as far back as 1875, where there were formerly herds of from ten to one hun- 
dred in number, not ten head are to be found. A combat between three lions 
and a bull buffalo was once witnessed by me. After a game fight the buffalo 
was vanquished. The bulls frequently engage in fights between themselves. 
I had the good fortune to> witness one of these. On looking through the edge 
of a thicket which concealed them I saw tw'o buffalo bulls standing facing each 
other with lowered heads, and, as I sat down to watch, they rushed together 
with all their force, producing a loud crash. Once their horns were interlocked, 
they kept them so', their straining quarters telling that each was doing his best 
to force the other backwards. Several long white marks on their necks 
showed where they had received scratches, and blood dripping down the 
withers of the one next me proved that he had received a more severe wound. 
It was a magnificent sight to see the enormous animals, every muscle at its 
fullest tension, striving for the mastery. Soon one, a very large and old 
bull, began to yield a little, going backwards step by step, but at last, as if 
determined to conquer or die, it dropped on its knees. The other, disengaging 
his horns for a second, so as to gain an impetus, again rushed at him, but 
did not strike him on the forehead, but on the neck, under the hump, and I 
could see that with a twist of his horns he inflicted a severe wound. Instead, 
however, of following up his advantage, this one withdrew and gave up the 
battle. Had he pressed his advantage he would eventually have won. 




THE STORY OF THE FOSSA. 



The fossa of Madagascar, which is the largest flesh-eating animal found 
in that island, is the species connecting the more typical members of the cat 
family. This peculiar animal differs, indeed, so remarkably from all the 
other representatives of the tribe, that it has been considered by some that it 
ought to be referred to a separate family. 

The fossa is a nearly uniformly-colored animal, with short and thick pale 
brown fur; and it attains a total length of about five feet from the snout 
to the tip of the tail, the length of the tail being more than three-quarters that 
of the head and body. The curved claws are sharp and retractile ; and the feet, 
each of which is furnished with five claws, are very similar to those of a cat, 
except that the whole sole of the hind pair is naked, and applied to the ground 
in walking. 

It is a purely nocturnal creature, o<f a fierce disposition, but scarcely any- 
thing is yet known of its habits. 

The fossa is undoubtedly one of the most interesting beasts of prey, if not 
one of the most interesting of animal creatures in general. Any scientist 
who disputes the fact that intermediate forms, which play such an impor- 
tant part in natural history in its newest aspect, really exist, must keep silence 
when he beholds this animal. The fossa cannot be determined nor compre- 
hended in any other way but as an intermediate or transitional form — as a 
link connecting the real cats with kindred animals. These animals existed 

145 



146 



THE STORY OF THE FOSSA. 



.in a less perfect state at an earlier , period of the earth's development, and 
are called stealthy cats, including the palm-civets, civets, genets and mun- 
gooses. Should the body of a large, reddish-brown palm-civet be imbued with 
the lively, sportive nature, the intense elasticity and supple mobility of a true 




THE FOSSA 



cat, this unique animal would present in itself the combination of these con- 
tradictory features. The feet, which are furnished with curved, sharp, and 
somewhat retractable claws, are very similar to those of a. cat, except that 
the whole sole of the hind pair is knotted, and applied to the ground in walk- 






THE STORY OF THE FOSSA. 147 

ing. The picture, unfortunately, does not convey a correct idea of the dispo- 
sition of the animal, the splendid, serpent-like, wavy motions of its body, 
which is of a light brown color tinged with red and gray. The muscular 
structure, however, shows a powerful, compact build. The limbs, though 
small, are well knit. The ears are large and rounded, while the tail measures 
more than three-fourths of the length of the head and body. The fossa has 
a total of thirty-six teeth, of which the hinder ones, both in form and number, 
closely resemble those of the cat. 

It is because the fossa is the largest of the flesh-eating animals of Mada- 
gascar that the lemurs flourish in that island. The fossa undoubtedly kills 
many of the smaller lemurs, but owing to the agility of those monkey-like 
little animals, it is difficult for even such an active, agile animal as the fossa 
to catch them — hence many escape because the fossa turns its attention to 
the pursuit of still smaller and easier prey. 



HUNTING THE ELEPHANT 

Elephant Charges ex-President — His Narrow Escape from Death — Dangers and Excite- 
ment of the Elephant Hunt — The Story of the Elephant. 



The most glorious hour in Mr. Roosevelt's experience as an African 
sportsman was that in which he bagged his first elephant. When the hunter 
succeecls in bringing the animal down at close range, in a thicket, his heart 
beats with delight — it is just a chance what his fate may be. However, widely 
experienced travelers differ in their views in regard to African sport in 




AN IVORY AND PALM OIL CARAVAN. 

general. They are all agreed that elephant hunting is the most dangerous 
task to which a man can set himself. Sooner or later the luck goes against 
the hunter. Of recent years a large number of good shots have lost their 
lives in Africa. If one of these huge animals once gets at the hunter, he is 
as good as dead. Mr. Roosevelt, too, narrowly escaped death when shooting 
his first bull elephant. 

148 



HUNTING THE ELEPHANT. 149 

Accompanied by his son Kermit, Edward Heller, R. J. Cunninghame and 
Mr. Selous, he left Nairobi in the early days of August for Nyeri, with the 
intention of getting a bull, cow or calf elephant for the National Museum. 

Although better elephants are obtainable in the Nile country of the 
Uganda, and its immediate neighborhood, Colonel Roosevelt was anxious 
to get an elephant in the Kenia district, so that Professor Heller, the taxi- 
dermist, could have a better chance in the cooler cljmate there of saving the 
skin in good condition for the Smithsonian Institution. 

Elephant hunting is no child's play, for in shooting the huge animals it 
is necessary often to creep up tp within some twenty feet of the herd, or even 
nearer, and shoot the selected bull at a range of fifteen to thirty yards, and, 
of course, if they get the wind or hear the hunter, the chances of his escape 
are small. There is something fascinating about an elephant hunt, for the 
chances are about even for the hunter and the hunted. Mr. Roosevelt fol- 
lowed this plan and found it worked so well that towards the end of Novem- 
ber he had already bagged nine elephants. 

The party were one day pursuing a lion into a jungle, Colonel Roosevelt 
marching at the head, closely followed by Mr. Selous, while Kermit was 
bringing up the rear, when they suddenly struck upon an elephant herd. 
Stamping with their mighty feet, the gigantic animals had smashed some 
young tree trunks and had shorn them of their twigs and branches, and with 
their trunks and tusks had torn the bark of larger trees in long strips or 
slices and consumed them. A big bull had just torn some long" sword-shaped 
hemp stalks out of the ground, and after chewing them dropped the fibers, 
gleaming white, where they lay in the sun. The sap of this plant is food as 
well as drink to them. At one point some of the elephants had gathered 
together under an acacia tree and were breaking and devouring all its lower 
branches and twigs. 

The ex-President instantly aimed at the head of the herd and would have 
fired had not the old experienced F. C. Selous, the greatest of the world's 
big game hunters, who has spent nearly forty years hunting in Africa, and 
killed hundreds of elephants, warned him that to do> so would be to challenge 
the animals to a charge, which would mean sure death to the hunters. Not 
without difficulty did he succeed in getting the ex-President and Kermit to 
move back and climb a tree for safety. Hidden among the branches they 
could see the elephants in the dense jungle. Roosevelt sent a whole load of 
bullets into 1 the largest bull, ran down from the tree and at a distance of about 
forty feet finished the gigantic beast with a bullet through its heart. 



150 HUNTING THE ELEPHANT. 

Before he could reload another bull elephant charged him, at close range. 
To be charged by an African elephant is as exciting a sensation as a man 
could wish for. The fierceness of his on-rush passes description. He makes 
for you suddenly, unexpectedly. The overpowering proportions of the enraged 
beast — the grotesque aspect of his immense * flopping ears, which made his 
huge head look more formidable than ever — the incredible pace at which he 
thundered along — all combined with his shrill trumpeting to produce an effect 
upon the mind of the hunters which they will never shake themselves rid of 
as long as life lasts. 

"When," says a famous African hunter, "it is a case not of one single 
elephant, but of an entire herd giving chase in the open plain, the readers will 
have no difficulty in understanding that even now I sometimes live the whole 
situation over again in my dreams and that I have more than once awoke 
from them in a frenzy of terror." 

Fortunately in this case the rest of the herd took to flight through the 
thicket. Both Mr. Selous and Mr. Roosevelt got behind trees, and the former 
fired at the charging bull and turned him from the Colonel just in time to 
save his life. 

One of the naturalists connected with the Roosevelt expedition, Mr. Ed- 
mund Heller, succeeded in preserving entire and in good condition the skin 
of the magnificent bull. It was a splendid specimen, its tusks weighing eighty 
pounds each. One of our illustrations shows how the big animal is skinned. 
On another page the reader will find a caravan carrying ivory to. the coast. 
The ivory trade is a very profitable business and thousands of natives and 
Europeans are employed in its service. Ivory is chiefly required to< make 
billiard balls and ornaments. It is, however, getting more and more rare, 
for during the last hundred years several millions of elephants have been 
ruthlessly slaughtered, so that this animal is no longer to be found anywhere 
in its original numbers. It is found most frequently in the desert places 
between Abyssinia and the Nile and the Galla country, or in the inaccessible 
parts of the Congo, on the Albert Nyanza, and in the forests of Nigeria and 
the Gold Coast. But in the vicinity of Victoria Nyanza, where Roosevelt 
hunted, and where a single elephant hunter some years ago alone slaughtered 
hundreds, things have changed greatly, and still it is not the white man who 
does most of this work of destruction. It is the native who obtains the 
greater part of the ivory used in commerce. Two subjects of a savage chief 
killed, for instance, a short time back, in the space of a year and a half, 



HUNTING THE ELEPHANT. 



151 



elephants, enough to provide one hundred and thirty-nine large tusks 
their ruler. Consequently the price of ivory has been rising gradually, 
is now ten times what it was some forty years ago, when a fifty-pound 
could be bought for some stuff worth about fifteen cents. 



for 
and 

tusk 




Prom photograph. 



SKINNING AN ELEPHANT. 



After the exciting adventure narrated above, Theodore Roosevelt and his 
party went on another extended hunt, which proved very successful. On then- 
arrival at Naivasha both the Colonel and Kermit looked tanned and felt well. 
They were delighted with their expedition and Mr. Roosevelt said both he 
and Kermit were very proud of having got their elephants, especially proud 
that each got one when they were unaccompanied by such experienced hunters 
as Cunninghame and Tarlton. The station was crowded with officials and 
settlers, wishing to greet Colonel Roosevelt after his long absence, and they 
gave him a warm welcome. 




Copyright 1909, by Underwood & Underwood. 

NATIVE HUNTERS' CAMP IN THE JUNGLE. 

Later the hunting was continued on the Guas Ingisha Plateau, where 
Colonel Roosevelt and his son Kermit succeeded in killing four elephants 
for the American Museum of Natural History at New York. Mr. Roosevelt 
decided to give one of the elephants killed earlier to the museum of the Univer- 
sity of California. 

The party took many other trophies, including five-horned giraffes, a 
leopard, a roan bosch bock, a singing tapi, a bohor and a kob. 

These valuable specimens were secured in a sportsmanlike way by stalking 
in the daytime — a method of hunting which involves great danger. 

152 



HUNTING THE ELEPHANT. 153 

In order to study the ways and habits of the wild animals the members of 
the expedition often had to undergo the hardships of spending many sleepless 
nights in the thicket. The numerous insects — ants, for instance — kept them 
wide-awake, and though they were not always successful the insight into the 
nightlife of many animals amply repaid them for their trouble. In the stillness 
of the night, illumined by the bright tropical moonlight we heard the laugh- 
ing cry of the long-tailed lemurs or they saw a herd of antelopes passing on 
their way to the drinking place. Now they distinguished through an opening 
in the jungle a huge mysterious apparition cautiously proceeding towards the 
river. It is a full-grown rhinoceros. A few jackals are howling in the distance 
and the tropical birds in the tree-tops utter their peculiar laugh. Here a gray- 
ish animal glides past the thicket quick as a lightning -and the next moment 
bull and lion roll on the ground in deadly embrace. Such were the nocturnal 
scenes which mingled with the weird and strange voices of the wilderness 
that met Colonel Roosevelt and his companions. 

The following facts relating to the elephant will be of interest : 

Everybody knows that the elephant is the largest of living animals, that 
his tusks are ivory and that he has enormous strength. Many other things 
the reader knows of this big beast, and yet this story is written for the pur- 
pose of describing scenes and incidents, in which I took a prominent part, 
new and novel to you. The years I lived in India and along the upper Nile 
have made me familiar with the animal and have given me an opportunity 
to study him in nature's domain. The elephant in captivity undergoes many 
changes in disposition and act. 

The deep and widespread interest in the elephant, which surpasses that 
accorded any other animal, is not misplaced, since the elephant is without 
exception the most extraordinary of the brute creation. The name pachy- 
derm is frequently used in describing the elephant, but it is no more applic- 
able than would be a half dozen others. Pachyderm means thick-skinned, 
and describes one quality of the animal, for the skin of the elephant is thicker 
and tougher than that of any other of the animals with the exception of the 
rhinoceros and the hippopotamus. 

Much has been written about the size attained by the elephant, but nothing 
is positively known, for no animal in captivity will attain the growth it will 
in its native state, and it is plain that there may be larger elephants still in the 
forest and jungle than were ever killed by the European hunters. The fact 
that tusks larger than those ever found by the white hunters are often 
brought to the coast by the natives of Africa give evidence of this. 



154 THE STORY OF THE ELEPHANT. 

Jumbo, over eleven feet in height at the withers and weighing over six and 
one-half tons, was raised in captivity at London and was in this country for 
several seasons. He was the chief attraction at a circus while on this side 
of the Atlantic. He was without doubt the largest specimen ever in this 
country, but I have seen a number larger and heavier both in Africa and in 
Ceylon and Bengal. The height of the African elephant, which is considered 
larger than the Asiatic, is probably never over fifteen feet, and his weight 
is certainly not more than eight or nine tons. His length of body is in some 
instances over thirty feet. 

The dimensions of the tusks vary greatly, and the maximum length is 
only approximately known. Several specimens measuring over twenty feet 
were brought me by natives, who declared they had seen much longer ones. 
One of these tusks weighed between two hundred and three hundred pounds. 

The tusks of the elephant furnish. exceedingly fine ivory, which is used 
for various purposes, such as knife-handles, combs, billiard-balls, etc. There 
is a great art in making a billiard-ball, Some parts of the tusk are always 
heavier than others, so that if the heavy part should fall on one side of the 
ball, it would not run true. The object of the maker is either to get the 
heavier portion in the center, or to make the ball from a piece of ivory of 
equal weight. In either case, the ball is made a little larger than the proper 
size; it is then hung up in a dry room for several months, and finally turned 
down to the requisite dimensions. 

It is of course impossible to obtain any accurate data as to the age which 
the elephant may attain in its wild state, and can only, therefore, suggest an 
approximation to what this may be from captive specimens. Although full 
grown at the age of twenty-five, an elephant, as determined by the condition 
of its teeth, is not then mature. A female captured in Coorg in 1805, when 
about three years of age, did not appear to be particularly old-looking in 
1898, although she had then passed her prime. Other individuals have been 
known to live in captivity for over a century; and since it is obvious that the 
artificial mode of life which prevails in this state cannot be one tending to 
promote longevity, it is probable that the estimate of a century and a half as 
the duration of life in the wild state is not excessive. 

In India each elephant has his own individual master or keeper, and a 
great attachment often springs up between the beast and his human friend. 
In many cases when the keeper falls ill or is killed, the elephant must be 
killed, for he will not obey any one else. Some of the tamed animals refuse 
to take instructions from any one but their master, and the intelligence 



THE STORY OF THE ELEPHANT. 



155 



shown is almost human. It is believed that the elephant has a small nerve 
center located in the brain and that in this peculiar formation is the seat of 
his intelligence. He is the only animal to -possess this unusual mass, which 
corresponds to the human ganglion. 

Long periods are required to complete the course of instruction, but 
when once mastered, the elephant is capable of doing many things which are 
of great use to man. It has been shown that the animal is used for many 




FEMALE INDIAN ELEPHANT. 



purposes, but when out of humor he will refuse to work and often proves 
destructive, rather than beneficial. Kipling, who wrote probably the best 
fiction ever printed regarding the elephant, has a number of stories which 
describe certain traits of the animal. In his story of "Moti Guj, Mutineer," 
he relates how the keeper of an elephant wanted to take a vacation. He ar- 
ranged to return on the ninth day, and when the time for departure came he 



156 THE STORY OF THE ELEPHANT. 

struck the elephant on the foot nine times to indicate the number of days 
he would be absent. During the nine days the elephant performed his regu- 
lar duties under the guidance of another keeper, but when the master failed 
to return on the tenth day, Moti Guj rebelled and refused to work. Not only 
did he absolutely refuse to perform his regular duties, but he went among 
the other elephants and induced them to go on a strike. There was a general 
revolt, and the police elephants, which are kept on all the large Indian planta- 
tions for the purpose of chastising unruly members of the band, were sent out 
to subdue the leader of the rebels. But Moti Guj showed fight and he finally 
overpowered and drove back the police. The herd was on a rampage the re- 
mainder of the day, but the following morning the keeper returned and Moti 
Guj was set to doing hard tasks. He accepted the situation cheerfully. 

During one of the wars in India I had an opportunity of observing one of 
the elephants that had received a flesh wound from a cannon-ball. After hav- 
ing been two or three times conducted to the hospital, he always used to go 
alone to have his wound dressed. 

The domesticated elephant is largely employed in India for the transport of 
heavy camp-equipage, for dragging timber to the rivers, and in lieu of horses 
for artillery; and is of especial value in traversing districts where roads are 
either wanting, or are so bad as to be impassable for other animals when 
laden. Elephants may be employed either as beasts of burden or of draught. 
In dragging timber of moderate dimensions, a short rope is attached to one 
end of each log, which the elephant seizes between his teeth, and thus raising 
his burden from the ground, half carries and half drags it away. Tuskers are 
both stronger and more useful than females, since their tusks often aid them 
in the performance of their duties. 

The majority of the animals employed in tasks like the above, belong to 
what the natives term the inferior castes; tuskers of the finest and most ap- 
proved form being far too expensive to be put to such uses. The majority 
of such animals are, indeed, purchased by the native princes, by whom they 
are used in state pageants, and the taller the animal, the greater his value. 

In India these animals were formerly employed in the launching of ships. 
An elephant was directed to force a very large vessel into the water; but the 
work proved superior to his strength. His master, in a sarcastic tone, bade 
the keeper take away this lazy beast, and bring another. The poor animal 
instantly repeated his efforts, fractured his skull, and died on the spot. 

A story is related of an elephant having formed such an attachment for 
a very young child, that he was never happy but when the child was near 



THE STORY OF THE ELEPHANT. 



157 



him. The nurse frequently took it in its cradle, and placed it between his 
feet. This he at length became so much accustomed to, that he would never 
eat his food except it was present. When the child slept, he would drive 
off the flies with his proboscis; and when it cried, would move the cradle 
backward and forward, and thus rock it again to sleep. 

A sentinel belonging to the present menagerie at Paris, was always very 
careful in requesting the spectators not to give the elephants anything to 
eat. This conduct particularly displeased the female, who beheld him with 




INDIAN ELEPHANT, TRUMPETING. 

(Showing methods of hunting it.) 

a very unfavorable eye, and several times endeavored to correct his inter- 
ference, by sprinkling his head with water from her trunk. One day, when 
severarpersons were collected to view these animals, a bystander offered the 
female a bit of bread. 

The sentinel perceived it; but the moment he opened his mouth to give 
his usual admonition, she, placing herself immediately before him, discharged 
in his face a considerable stream of water. A general laugh ensued, but the 



158 THE STORY OF THE ELEPHANT. 

sentinel, having calmly wiped his face, stood a little to one side, and con- 
tinued as vigilant as before. Soon afterwards, he found himself under the 
necessity of repeating his admonition to the spectators; but no sooner was 
this uttered than the female laid hold of his musket, twirled it round with her 
trunk, trod it under her feet, and did not restore it till she had twisted it 
nearly into the form of a screw. 

At Macassar, an elephant driver had a cocoanut given him, which, out 
of wantonness, he struck twice against his elephant's forehead, to break. 
The day following the animal saw some cocoanuts exposed in the street for 
sale; and taking one of them up with his trunk, beat it about the driver's 
head, and killed him on the spot. 

A tame elephant, kept by an officer in India, was suffered to go at large. 
The animal used to walk about the streets in as quiet and familiar a manner 
as any of the inhabitants; and delighted much in visiting the shops, particu- 
larly those which sold herbs and fruit, where he was well received, except by 
a couple of brutal cobblers, who, without any cause, took offense at the gen- 
erous creature, and once or twice attempted to wound his proboscis with 
their awls. The noble animal, who 1 knew it was beneath him to crush them, 
did not disdain to chastise them by other means. He filled his large trunk 
with a considerable quantity of water, not of the cleanest quality, and ad- 
vancing to them, as usual, covered them at once with a dirty flood. The fools 
were laughed at, and the punishment applauded. 

I have had experience with both the African and the Indian elephant 
and know the former to be the 'more dangerous animal of the two, and the 
one that is more ready to charge. The females, especially those that are 
barren and have small tusks, are far more dangerous than males, frequently 
charging without the least provocation, even when unwounded; and hunters 
will sometimes take the trouble to kill one of these worthless females before 
attacking the tuskers. I am of the opinion that the greater number of acci- 
dents that have occurred in African elephant-shooting may be set down to 
females. 

The intrepid Arabs of the Soudan slay the elephant in the same manner 
as the rhinoceros, by hamstringing it with a long two-edged sword. Three 
or four mounted hunters, singling out a tusker and separating it from its 
fellows, follow it until, tired out, the animal faces its pursuers, and prepares 
to charge. Directly it does so, the hunter who is the object of the charge 
puts his horse to a gallop, and is closely followed by the elephant. There- 
upon, two of his companions follow at their best pace behind ; and as soon as 



THE STORY OF THE ELEPHANT. 



159 



they come up with the fleeing animal, one seizes the reins of the horse of 
his fellow, who immediately leaps to the ground, and with one blow of his 
huge sword divides the tendon of the elephant's leg a short distance above 
the heel. The ponderous beast is at once brought to a standstill, and is at 
the mercy of its aggressors. 

A somewhat similar method was formerly practiced in Mashonaland, only 




AFRICAN ELEPHANT. 



there the hunters went on foot, and their weapon was a broad-bladed axe; 
with this they crept up behind a sleeping elephant, and severed the back ten- 
don of the leg in the same manner as above. 

Other tribes in the same district employ a heavily-weighted spear, which 
is plunged into the animal's back by a hunter seated on a bough overhanging 
one of the most frequented pathways. On receiving the weapon, the elephant 



160 THE STORY OF THE ELEPHANT. 

of course immediately rushes off, and the weight of the spear, aided by blows 
from boughs, soon so enlarges the wound, that the animal quickly sinks to 
the ground, exhausted from loss of blood. In other districts, as in parts of 
Equatoria, the weighted spear is suspended from a horizontal bar fixed be- 
tween two tiers of poles. The spear or knife is kept in position by a cord, 
which is held down by a stake that is directed horizontally toward the middle 
of the trap; and by another which, at a convenient angle, is interposed be- 
tween this and the end. The animal, striking with his feet, loosens the con- 
trivance, which then falls violently ; the knife wounds the animal with singular 
exactness in the spot where the brain unites with the nape of the neck. The 
blow falls like a thunder-clap ; and if the trap is well made, the elephant strug- 
gles and dies. 

The European sportsman kills the African elephant either by lying in 
wait at one of its drinking-places, or by attacking it in the open, either on 
foot or on horseback. At the present day, however, most or all of the ele- 
phants remaining in South-Eastern Africa are restricted to districts infested 
by the tsetsi fly, where horses cannot exist, and the pursuit must conse- 
quently be undertaken on foot. Owing to the conformation of its skull, the 
front-shot, so frequently emloyed in the case of the Indian elephant, is inef- 
fectual with the African species, and there are but two spots where a bullet 
may be expected to prove fatal; one of these being in the head behind the 
eye, and the other in the shoulder immediately behind the flap of the ear. 

The old bulls are frequently solitary for a time, but generally each belongs 
to a particular herd, which it visits occasionally. Solitary male elephants 
are known as "rogues," and are generally characterized by their fierce and 
quarrelsome disposition. Elephants that are permanently solitary are, how- 
ever, comparatively rare, the majority of the so-called rogues really belong- 
ing to herds. These leave their companions, as a rule, merely for a time, in 
order to visit the cultivated lands, where the less venturesome females hesi- 
tate to follow, and where they inflict enormous damage on the growing 
crops. 

In the kingdom of Siam there are occasionally to be found white ele- 
phants, but these are very scarce, and are regarded with much veneration. 
This is owing to the belief of the Siamese in the doctrine that the souls of 
men, after their death, pass into the body of some white animal. They 
imagine that the body of so rare an animal as a white elephant must of neces- 
sity be inhabited by the spirit of some king or other mighty personage. They 
say, that for all his majesty the King of Siam knows to the contrary, the 



THE STORY OF THE ELEPHANT. 



161 



soul of his father, or some other ancestor, may inhabit the body of one oi' 
the white elephants; and, in consequence of this theory, every white elephant, 
in Siam, has the title of king, is lodged and fed in a very sumptuous manner, 
and is never ridden, even by the king himself, as the elephant is as great a 
king as he is. 

A curious instance is recorded of the elephant's liking for sweetmeats, and 




BABY ELEPHANT OF THE SOUDAN. 



of a method adopted in his savage state to' gratify this propensity. It chanced 
that a Coolie, laden with jaggery, which is a coarse preparation of sugar, was 
surprised in a narrow pass in India by a wild elephant. The poor fellow, in- 
tent upon saving his life, threw down the burden, which the elephant de- 
voured, and, being well pleased with the repast, determined not to allow any 



162 



THE STORY OF THE ELEPHANT. 



person to pass either way, who did not provide him with, a similar banquet. 
The pass formed one of the principal thoroughfares to< the capital, and the 
elephant, taking up a formidable position at the entrance, obliged every pas- 
senger to pay tribute. It soon became generally known that a donation of 
jaggery would insure a safe conduct through the guarded portal, and no one 
presumed to attempt the passage without the expected offering. 

No animal is more ferociously destructive than an infuriated elephant; 




SCENES IN AN ELEPHANT'S LIFE. 



even in the domesticated state, they are known to be gratified with carnage, 
and hence they have been frequently employed as executioners by the despots 
of the East. One of the Epirote elephants, furious from pain, shook off his 
driver, and rushing back upon the phalanx which Pyrrhus had formed with 
closer ranks than usual, crushed and destroyed a great number of soldiers be- 
fore any remedy could be found for such a disaster. 

On a previous occasion the delight of the elephant in carnage had been 



THE STORY OF THE ELEPHANT. 



163 



fearfully demonstrated. Before the body of Alexandria was laid in the tomb, 
three hundred of his bravest companions were- crushed to death by elephants, 
i.i the presence of the entire army, by command of the regent Perdiccas. 

An elephant, with a good driver, gives, perhaps, the best instance of dis- 
ciplined courage to be seen in the animal world. Elephants will submit, day 
after day, to have painful wounds dressed in obedience to their keepers, and 
meet danger in obedience to their orders, though their intelligence is suf- 




one of mr. Seymour's hunting elephants. 



ficient to understand the peril, and far too great for man to trick them into 
a belief that there is no' risk. No animal will face danger more readily at 
man's bidding. As an example, it is told that a small female elephant was 
charged by a buffalo, in high grass, and her rider in the hurry of the mo>- 
ment, and perhaps owing to the sudden stoppage of the elephant, fired an 
explosive shell from his rifle, not into the buffalo, but into the elephant's 
shoulder. The wound was so severe, that it had not healed a year later. 



164 THE STORY OF THE ELEPHANT. 

Yet the elephant stood firm, although it was gored by the buffalo, which was 
then killed by another gun. 

In case of wounds or injuries the elephant has an immense advantage over 
all other animals, in the use of its trunk for dressing wounds. It is at once 
a syringe, a powdering-puff and a hand. Water, mud, and dust are the 
main "applications" used, though it sometimes covers a sun-scorched back 
with grass or leaves. Wounded elephants have marvelous power of recovery 
when in their wild state, although they have no gifts of surgical knowledge, 
their simple system being confined to* plastering their wounds with mud, or 
blowing dust upon the surface. Dust and mud comprise the entire stock of 
medicines of the elephant, and this is applied upon the most trivial, as well 
as upon the most serious occasions. I have seen them when in a tank plaster 
up a bullet wound with mud taken from the bottom. 

The African elephant is more of a tree- feeder than the Indian, and the 
destruction committed by a large herd of such animals when feeding in a 
mimosa-forest is extraordinary ; they deliberately march forward, and uproot 
or break down every tree that excites their appetite. The mimosas are gen- 
erally from sixteen to twenty feet high, and, having no» tap-root, they are 
easily overturned by the tusks of the elephants, which are driven like crowbars 
beneath the roots, and used as levers, in which rough labor they are frequently 
broken. Upon the overthrow O'f a tree, the elephants eat the roots and leaves, 
and strip the bark from the branches by grasping them with their rough trunks. 
Two elephants may sometimes unite their strength in order to> overthrow a 
tree of more than ordinary size. In South-Eastern Africa I have seen large 
areas of sandy soil ploughed up by the tusks of these animals in their search 
for roots. 

In digging the elephant always uses one particular tusk, which, in conse- 
quence, is much more worn than the other. It is nearly always the right 
tusk which is selected for this duty; and the one so used is termed by the 
Sudanis the hadam, or servant. 

In Southern Africa, at least, elephants drink almost every night, but only 
rarely during the day. In that part of the continent they seek the deepest 
shades of the forest during the heat of the day, and generally appear to> sleep 
in a standing posture. 



THE SHIP OF THE DESERT 

The Camel — The Carrier of Commerce of Northern Africa — Lives for Many Days Without 
Food and Drink — How the Camel Is Loaded — A Caravan in the Desert. 



While the camel is not a wild animal, still it is so characteristic to African 
conditions that we cannot but give it a place in our menagerie. What the 
Roman roads were to Europe before the age of steam and electricity, the camel 
has been, and in some localities still is, to> Africa from time immemorial. The 
immense sea of sand which covers a great part of Northern Africa would be 
practically inaccessible without the "Ship of the Desert" — the patient, enduring 
and indefatigable camel. 

It is doubtful whether the camel ever was a wild animal in Africa. Most 
naturalists are agreed that it was introduced into the dark Continent by Ara- 
bian traders from Asia. At least it has never been found on African soil and 
in fact nowhere else either in its wild state. Like our domestic animals it has 
been man's faithful servant and companion already in prehistoric times and 
long before any written records of its history could have been produced. It 
is found on the oldest monuments in Egypt and must have been well at home 
there long before the time of Moses. 

But the time is rapidly approaching when modern devices and means of 
communication shall have taken the place the camel now fills. The extension 
of commerce and trade along the borders of Sahara require improved mail 
service. At present it takes a caravan of camels three months to cover the 
thousand miles of desert and oases separating the Niger from Colomb-Bechor. 
This is too slow for our twentieth century business transactions. It is estimated 
that the same route could be made in twenty-four hours by aeroplane; and 
the French government is now about to establish an aerial mail service through 
the desert. The aeroplane trip will be made in three stretches of eight hours 
each, three stations being provided for taking fuel; and the whole journey 
need not take longer than three days at the most. 

Notwithstanding the great service the "Ship of the Desert" is doing, com- 
merce and trade in and around Sahara, still this vast ocean of sand is the 
greatest barrier to travel and transportation. Civilization, therefore, will 
make rapid headway in North and Central Africa once the aeroplane is placed 

166 



THE SHIP OF THE DESERT. 167 

in operation. Aside from the incalculable benefit that the white man's prestige 
and rule will derive from its introduction into the Dark Continent, the aero- 
plane can greatly advance the explorati6n of the Sahara and further its 
reclamation. 

The numerous French expeditions into the interior of the desert during 
the last decade, which have brought to light so many surprising and promising 
features, would have been impossible without the camel. The old conception 
of the Sahara was completely modified through the discovery, in its very 
center, of the fertile plateau of Ahaggar, supporting an extensive grazing 
industry among the Tuareg tribes. Another great caravan expedition by 
camels along the southern edge of the desert revealed the astounding fact 
that this region at one time had been an agricultural belt, while in the north 
the tests as to ground waters have shown that new oases may be formed in 
numerous places by artificial irrigation. Petroleum was also found conspicu- 
ously among the universal products. All these discoveries and explorations 
have been made possible through the camel, the only animal capable of travers- 
ing these desolate and arid regions. 

The Arabs who inhabit desert regions would be helpless without the 
camel, which animal is to them as essential as the railroad is to the American 
citizen. Northern Africa and Central Asia embrace regions thousands of 
miles in extent, in which the camel is almost without exception the only 
large animal that can thrive on the scant supply of vegetation and water af- 
forded. Hot, burning sand under the torrid sun offers no impediment to 
the sure-footed "ship of the desert," as the camel is called. 

The camels of the Old World, and the llamas of the New, form a group of 
ruminating animals distinguished widely from the true ruminants, and which 
probably have had a totally distinct origin from more primitive even-toed 
members of this group. 

The camels of the Old World, of which there are two distinct species, are 
characterized by their great bodily size and bulk, and the presence of one or 
two large fatty humps on the back. The feet are broad, with the toes very 
imperfectly separated; and the tail is comparatively long, reaching nearly 
to the hocks, and furnished near the end with long hair forming a terminal 
tuft. Callous pads, on which the animal rests when lying down, and which 
are present at birth, are found on the chest, the elbows, the wrists (commonly 
called the knees), and the knees. The whole form of these animals is far from 
beautiful, while the head is ugly in the extreme; and this want of bodily 
beauty is accompanied by a viciousness of temper and general stupidity of 



168 THE STORY OF THE CAMEL. 

disposition which can scarcely be paralleled elsewhere among domesticated 
animals. 

The best-known species is the true or Arabian camel, which is found both 
in Africa and Asia, and is characterized by its single hump. It is a long- 
limbed animal, with a comparatively short coat of hair, and soft feet, adapted 
for walking on yielding sandy soil, and standing from about six feet eight 
inches to seven feet in height. The head is comparatively short, with a long 
and sloping muzzle, and convex forehead ; the eyes are large, with a soft expres- 
sion ; and the small rounded ears are placed far back on the sides of the head. 
The contour of the back rises from the setting on of the neck to the loins, and 
then falls rapidly away to the tail. The hump, when the animal is in good 
condition, stands upright, but it alters considerably in shape according to 
age. The richer the food of the camel, the larger is its hump; while, when 
the food is poor and dry, the hump decreases in size; and accordingly in 
the rainy season this appendage attains its maximum development, while in 
the dry months it proportionately shrinks. In high-conditioned animals, the 
hump should form a regular pyramid, and occupy at least a quarter of the 
whole length, but when the animals are half-starved it almost disappears. 
The color of the hair is very variable, although a light sandy is the most 
common hue; there are, however, white, gray, brown, and even totally black 
camels; but those of the last-named color are held by the Arabs to be worth- 
less. 

The food of the camel in its natural state probably consisted entirely of 
branches and leaves of trees, and although grain is now largely given, a cer- 
tain amount of green-food is absolutely essential to the animal's health. No 
matter how thorny the boughs may be, they are quite acceptable to the 
camel; and it is perfectly marvellous how the animals manage to eat such 
food without injury to their mouths. On such a diet, or even on dates, 
camels will do well; but when compelled to work for days with little or no 
food, they soon break down, as was disastrously shown in the expedition to 
Khartum. 

The dromedary camel, called by the Arabs the "ship of the desert," be- 
cause it serves to transport over an ocean of sand the commodities which the 
nomadic tribes are forced to seek in distant countries, possesses all the requi- 
sites for performing long journeys. Robust, docile and patient, it pursues its 
course with a steady gait, browsing a little on its way, and not needing water 
for three or four days. The elevated position of its head and its long neck 
prevent its being suffocated by the sand of the desert; its eyes, defended by 



THE STORY OF THE CAMEL. 



169 



thick eyelids, are half closed to avoid the glare of the sun; its fleshy feet are 
remarkably broad, so that they produce only a slight impression upon the 
yielding surface of the desert, over which other animals find great difficulty 
in walking. 

Its pace, suited to that of man, renders it admirably adapted to the 
movement of caravans, in which there is always a crowd of persons on foot. 
Considered as a beast of burden, the dromedary camel is of unquestionable 




BACTRIAN CAMEL OF CENTRAL ASIA. 



value in countries where the heat of the sun and the scarcity of food and 
water preclude the possibility, not only of any other domestic animals bearing 
burdens, but even of their traveling with speed and safety for great distances. 
If the camel may be compared to a merchant vessel, the dromedary mer- 
its the title of a ship of war, since it is suited to the journeys and combats 
which lead the Arabs to traverse great distances over an ocean of sand. 



170 THE STORY OF THE CAMEL. 

Considered as a direct auxiliary of man in war, the dromedary may in 
many cases advantageously replace the horse. That the ancients employed it 
in war is a fact attested alike by monuments and writers. 

Owing to its many services, the pagan Arabs held the dromedary camel 
in such veneration that they consecrated to the gods three females, which 
were exempted from labor, and the cream of whose milk was used for liba- 
tions. 

The pack-saddle of the camel consists of a cushion of cloth filled with 
fibres of the date-tree. The ends of this cushion are doubled together and 
form the inner part of the pack-saddle. Above this are placed two props or 
wooden angles, fastened together by two sticks of equal size made fast by 
means of small cords. The hump of the camel comes between the two 
branches of the pack-saddle. Two large bags usually constitute the load of 
a camel. They are suspended to the crosspieces which fasten the reins. The 
camel carries only a simple bridle attached to' a headstall ornamented with 
tassels, little shells or glass ornaments, and surmounted by a bouquet of cock 
or ostrich feathers. The leader of the file carries, beside, around his neck, a 
little bell, the monotonous sound of which encourages the band and distin- 
guishes it from other parties. 

The camel is made to kneel during the process of loading or unloading. 
In order to force him into this position they bear upon his halter, crying 
"Kha! kha!" The animal exhibits more or less docility, though he never 
obeys without giving vent to groans either pitiful or enraged, by which, as 
also by certain movements of the head, he shows that he suffers, that he is 
sufficiently loaded, or that he dreads the fatigue of the journey. When they 
are traveling in caravans these cries, repeated every morning by each camel, 
indicate the moment of departure. The animal is retained in the position 
requisite for loading by doubling one of the front legs together and tying 
it at the knee, as it could still rise on three legs; refractory animals are fas- 
tened thus by two legs. The camel makes four sudden jerks in sitting, which 
he does by elevating his hind-quarters first, thus putting his rider or burden 
in an angle of forty degrees. Great caution, then, is requisite to prevent a 
dangerous fall. Only a quarter of an hour is required for loading, when the 
camel rises slowly and commences his journey. The driver, walking behind 
or at his side, urges him forward by crying, "Da! da!" When it becomes 
requisite to turn the animal to the right or left, it is done by pulling his tail 
in the opposite direction, and he obeys the movements as a vessel does the 
action of the rudder. 



THE STORY OF THE CAMEL. 



171 



When a caravan is very numerous, people of the same country or tribe 
unite and form distinct groups, who journey separately at trifling distances 
from each other. The column is allowed to spread in proportion to the safety 
of the route, but is kept close and compact where the converse is the case. 




ARABIAN CAMELS. 



In most instances camels follow their guide or leader of the file, attached to 
one another by means of a rope fastened behind the pack-saddle of the one, 
to the headstall of the other. 

A caravan en route, or rather a tribe journeying, presents a most pic- 
turesque appearance. The camels carry the tents, cooking utensils, and pro- 



172 THE STORY OF THE CAMEL. 

visions. Others bear canopies of linen or brilliant colored stuffs, on light 
frameworks made of wood or palm branches. Under these dais repose the 
women, children, invalids, and oftentimes the young camels which are unable 
to endure the fatigue of the journey. The men ride barebacked upon the 
rear ranks of the non-laden camels, and many enjoy tranquil slumber, undis- 
turbed by fear of falling from their perilous position. The chiefs, on horse- 
back, follow or escort the caravan, and men, on foot or mounted on asses, 
are scattered here and there the whole length of the file, according as occu- 
pation or inclination leads them. 

During winter the caravan pursues its way from morning till night with- 
out stopping; but in summer a few hours, during the hottest portion of the 
day, is consecrated to repose. In any case the average number of hours in 
the day's journey does not exceed ten. 

During the journey, the camel looks around for the pasturage he likes, 
and, by elongating his neck, browses upon it without discontinuing his 
march. At the evening halt, a locality as rich in pasturage as can be found is 
selected, the bags and all the luggage of the caravan are deposited in order, 
and piled around in a circle; the camels separate in search of pasturage, but 
are kept in sight by the drivers, who' fasten their forefeet as a security against 
their wandering too far away. While the camels are browsing, their driver 
goes to fill the leathern bottles at the well or spring, if there be one in the 
locality; if not, the poor animals' only resource is patience. 

The camel pays no heed to> his rider, pays no attention whether he be 
on his back or not, walks straight on when once set agoing, merely because 
he is too stupid to turn aside. Should some tempting thorn or green branch 
allure him out of the path, he continues to walk on in the new direction, 
simply because he is too dull to turn back into the right road. He is from 
first to last an undomesticated and savage animal, rendered serviceable by 
stupidity alone. 

In addition to its value as a beast of burden, the camel is also esteemed 
by the natives of many countries on account of its milk and flesh, while its 
hair is woven into ropes and cloth, and in some parts of India its bones are 
used instead of ivory for inlaying and decorative purposes. 

The Bactrian camel of Central Asia is distinguished from the Arabian 
species, not only by its double hump, but likewise by its inferior height, 
stouter and more clumsy build, shorter legs, and harder and shorter feet, as 
well as by the greater length and abundance of the hair. This animal is, in- 
deed, in all respects, better adapted for a rocky and hilly country than its 



THE STORY OF THE CAMEL. 173 

southern relative; its shorter and stouter limbs rendering it far less liable to 
accidents in traversing precipitous ascents. The largest development of hair 
occurs upon the top of the head, the neck and shoulders, the upper part of 
the fore-limbs, and the humps. 

The Bactrian camel feeds chiefly upon the saline and bitter plants of the 




A BABY CAMEL. 



steppes which are rejected by almost all other animals; and displays a curious 
partiality for salt, drinking freely at the brackish water and salt lakes, which 
are so common throughout its habitat. Instead of confining itself to a 
strictly vegetable diet, the Bactrian camel will, when pressed by hunger, 
readily devour almost anything that it may come across, including felt- 
blankets, bones and skins of animals, flesh and fish. 



174 THE STORY OF THE CAMEL. 

The riding camels are a different breed from those used to carry mer- 
chandise, and a swift camel is as highly prized by an Arab as a good horse is 
prized by Americans or Europeans. The speed of these riding camels con- 
sidered in connection with their endurance is something remarkable. Egyptian 
camels have been known to travel a hundred and twenty miles a day. They 
can go a hundred miles a day easily, and there are authentic cases in Africa 
of messages having been sent a thousand miles in ten days by camel. 

The swiftest breed of the riding camel is known as "El Heine." The 
Arabs, in their poetical way of speaking, describe the speed of a heirie some- 
thing after this manner : "When thou shalt meet a heirie and say to the rider 
'Salem Aleik,' ere he shall have answered the 'Aleik Salem' he will be afar 
off and nearly out of sight, for his swiftness is like the wind." 

Although the camel serves its master well, it rarely receives good treatment 
in return. It is beaten with and without cause. At night its forelegs are tied 
together while the animal is in a kneeling position, thus preventing it from 
rising and straying. When it is over-loaded it will not rise, and no amount 
of beating will make it, although the Arab continues to belabor it with a club, 
which experience should have taught him is perfectly useless under the cir- 
cumstances. 

While the camel always wears a look of weariness and despondency, it is 
one of the most .tireless of animals, and is fitted by nature to undergo hard- 
ships that would kill the average four-footed beast.' 



THE SCAVENGER HYENA. 

Kermit Rides Down a Hyena — Habits of this Carrion-eating Beast — The Scavengers of the 
Velt and the Steppe. 



The hyenas roam over the length and breadth of Africa, south of the Sa- 
hara, following the other animals as they change their habitat according to 
the seasons, and Colonel Roosevelt often heard theiruhowling around his camp 
at night, for the hyena is a nocturnal beast. In the dark night its deep bass 
was heard and then it would laugh aloud, in a weird, shrill, shrieking treble. 
This laugh, seldom uttered, but making one's heart shudder, is not a thing 
to forget; on feverish nights it plagues one still in memory. No one need 
jest about it who has not himself heard it. He who has heard it understands 
how the Arabs take the hyenas to be wicked men living under a spell. 




HEADS OF HYENAS FROM PHOTOGRAPHS. 



The hyenas are the scavengers of the vast African plains ; as a rule they do 
away with the carcasses of the big mammals, and also with the dead human 
bodies, before decay starts. A hunter once saw five hyenas running out of 

175 



176 THE SCAVENGER HYENA. 

the body of a dead elephant which had been killed by a professional sportsman. 
It is interesting to see them gulping down large pieces of flesh and big bones, 
which they grind with their strong teeth, thus marvelously quickly disposing 
of the biggest carcasses. 

The hyenas are too cowardly to attack men, but their unwelcome presence 
can always be counted upon wherever human beings fall victims to famine, 
disease or war, yea they even dig up the corpses from the graves and devour 
them, and their hideous growl is often heard as they prowl around the grave- 
yard at night-time. They also frequently venture within the houses to carry 
off meat and whatever they can seize — skins, pieces of leather, etc. — and still 
oftener attack and kill asses, sheep, dogs and poultry. Once in a great while 
it also happens that a child is carried off by a hyena and crushed between its 
formidable jaws, with one bite of which it can crush the leg-bone of an ox to 
splinters, crunching it as easily as if it were a stick of candy, and seem to 
think no more of it than we should of a slice of bread and butter. 

Says a famous naturalist and traveler who has spent years on the East 
African hunting grounds : 

In all my associations with hunters, travellers and naturalists, I have 
never yet been able to find one who would defend the hyena, which by com- 
mon consent is classed as the most skulking, cowardly, cruel and treacherous 
of beasts. 

The hyena is remarkable for its predatory, ferocious, and withal cowardly 
habits. There are several hyenas, the striped, the spotted, and the shaggy, 
rough-coated, but the habits of all are very similar. The hyenas, although 
very repulsive in appearance, are yet very useful, as they prowl in search of 
dead animals, especially of the larger kinds, and will devour them even when 
putrid, soi that they act the same part among beasts that the vultures do 
among birds, and are equally uninviting in aspect. They not unfrequently 
dig up recently interred corpses, and in Abyssinia they even flock in numbers 
into the village streets, where they prey on slaughtered men who are thrown 
out unburied. One of these animals attacked the explorer Bruce in his tent, 
and was only destroyed after a severe battle. Their jaws and teeth are ex- 
ceedingly powerful, as they can crush the thigh-bone of an ox with appar- 
ently little effort; and so great is the strain upon the bones by the exertions 
of these muscles, that the vertebrae of the neck become united together, and 
the animal has a perpetual stiff neck in consequence. 

In Syria and Palestine the favorite haunts of the striped hyena are the 



THE SCAVENGER HYENA. 



177 



rock-cut tombs so common in these countries; but in India it is more com- 
monly found in holes and caves in rocks. I have more than once turned one 
out of a sugar-cane field when looking for jackals, and it very commonly 
lurks among ruins; but in general its den is in a hole dug by itself on the 
side oi a hill or ravine, or a cave in a rock. The call of the hyena is a very 
disagreeable, unearthly cry, and dogs are often tempted out by it when near v 
and fall a victim to the stealthy marauder. On one occasion a small dog be- 
longing to an officer was taken off by a hyena very early in the morning. 




SPOTTED HYENA. 



The den of this beast was known to be not far off in some sandstone cliffs, 
and some sepoys of the detachment went after it, entered the cave, killed the 
hyena, and recovered the dog alive, with but little damage done to it. A hyena, 
though it does not appear to move very fast, gets over rough ground in a 
wonderful manner, and it takes a good long run to overtake it on horseback, 
unless in most favorable ground. A stray hyena is now and then met with by 
a party of sportsmen, followed and speared; but sometimes not till after a run 



178 THE STORY OF THE HYENA. 

of three- or four miles, if the ground is broken by ravines. It is a cowardly 
animal, and shows but little fight when brought to bay. The young are very 
tamable, and show great signs of attachment to their owner, in spite of all 
that has been written about the untamable ferocity of the hyena. 

The striped hyena's food is mainly carrion or carcasses killed by other ani- 
mals; and in inhabited districts the animal is much dreaded on account of its 
grave-robbing propensities. Portions of such carcasses as it finds are eaten on 
the spot, while other parts are dragged off to its den, the situation of which 
is generally indicated by the fragments of bones around the entrance. These 
hyenas will also feast on skeletons that have been picked down to the bone by 
jackals and vultures; the bone-cracking power of the hyena's jaws rendering 
such relics acceptable, if not favorite, food. 

The striped hyena — probably on account of its "body-snatching" propen- 
sities — is cordially detested by the natives of all the countries it inhabits. 
When a hyena is killed, the body is treated in many parts of India with every 
mark of indignity, and finally burnt. On one occasion in the Punjab, I came 
across a party of natives cruelly ill-treating a nearly full-grown hyena, which 
had been rendered helpless by its jaws being muzzled and its feet broken. I 
soon ended the sufferings of the poor brute by a bullet. 

Although, owing to their nocturnal habits, hyenas are seldom seen, yet 
in some parts of India, from the multitude of their tracks, they must be very 
common. 

The African spotted hyena is much larger and more powerful than the 
striped species. It inhabits the greater part of Africa at the present day. 
Formerly the geographical range of this hyena was far more extensive than 
it is at present, as is proved by the vast quantities of its remains found in the 
caves of various parts of Europe, from Gibraltar in the south to Yorkshire in 
the north. It was formerly considered, indeed, that the so-called "cave- 
hyena" indicated a distinct species from the living one; but zoologists are 
now generally in accord in regarding the two as specifically identical, al- 
though the fossil European hyenas were generally of larger dimensions than 
the existing African form. 

The cowardly and carrion-eating hyena is not a big game animal and our 
ex-President did not care to spend much time in hunting it. But Kermit put up 
one in a jungle, while the safari was camping on Kapiti Plains, and after an 
exciting chase over the stony steppe for several miles finally succeeded in bag- 
ging the fleeing beast. 




STORY OF THE WILD SHEER- 



President Roosevelt simply stated a fact known to all Western 
hunters when he described the difficulties attending a successful pursuit of 
the Rocky Mountain sheep, or "big horn," as they are generally known. 
During Mr. Roosevelt's various outing excursions he took a keen delight in 
hunting this wary animal, but frequently he was compelled to acknowledge 
defeat. In the spring and summer the full-grown rams form separate bands 
of from three to twenty, and are usually found feeding along the edges of 
glacier-meadows, or resting among castle-like crags of the high summits ; and 
whether quietly feeding, or scaling the wild cliffs for pleasure, their noble 
forms, and the power and beauty of their movements, never fail to strike 
the beholder with lively admiration. Their resting-place seems to be chosen 
with reference to sunshine and a wide .outlook, and most of all to safety 
from the attacks of wolves. Flocks of these sheep have, on more than one 
occasion, been known to leap down a precipice one hundred and fifty feet 
in height. 

They frequent the elevated and craggy ridges with which the country 
between the great mountain range and the Pacific is intersected; but they 
do not appear to have advanced farther to the eastward than the declivity 
of the Rocky Mountains. 

Their favorite feeding-places are grassy knolls, skirted by craggy rocks, 

i79 



180 THE STORY OF THE WILD SHEEP. 

to which they can retreat when followed by dogs or wolves. They are 
accustomed to pay daily visits to certain caves in the slaty rocks that are 
encrusted with a salty growth, of which they are fond. The flesh of this 
sheep is quite delicious when it is in season. 

Although the "big horn" was numerous throughout an immense region 
a few decades ago, the advance of the white man has served to diminish 
their numbers, and, like the buffalo, the animal will soon be extinct unless 
the Government gives it protection. These sheep have been seen on the 
summits of the highest peaks in the United States, and their agility in 
crossing crags and glaciers is marvelous. 

I shot a ram in Wyoming several years ago which stood four feet in 
height at the withers, weighed over four hundred pounds, and whose horns, 
measured along the curve, were forty-two inches in length. The ewes stand 
about three feet in height. 

The magnificent wild sheep of Mongolia is known as the argali, and is 
as large as a full grown donkey. A closely allied species is found in Thibet. 
Both of these have many points of similarity with the "big horn." 

The Pamir sheep takes its name from inhabiting the elevated district 
in Central Asia known as the Pamirs, or "Roof of the World." It is also 
found on the table-lands to the westward and northward of Eastern 
Turkestan. 

The Pamir sheep, although furnished with longer horns, does not appear 
to attain quite such large dimensions as the Thibetan argali, from which it 
is mainly distinguished by the form of the horns, and also by color. In the 
male the horns, when viewed from the side, are seen to form a spiral of 
about a circle and a quarter; and when adult they are much longer than 
those of the argali, but are less massive at the base. In fine specimens I 
measured, the horns attained a length of from sixty to seventy inches along 
the curve, with a girth at the base of about fifteen inches. One specimen had 
the remarkable length of eighty-two inches, with a girth of eighteen inches. 

The European member of this family is known as the mouflon, and 
formerly was found in all parts of continental Europe. In recent years the 
animal has become extinct except in Sardinia and Corsica. The mouflon 
is much smaller than the other species, rarely measuring more than thirty 
inches at the withers. 

In Sardinia the mouflon, instead of being found on all the mountain 
ranges, are restricted to certain chains, and there they frequent only the 
highest ridges, generally confining themselves to such peaks as command 



THE STORY OF THE WILD SHEEP. 



181 



a view of the whole of the surrounding country. The flocks of mouflon 
are led by an old and powerful ram; but at the pairing-season the large flocks 
used to split up into small parties, consisting of one ram and several ewes. 
The rams engage in fierce conflicts among themselves for the supremacy; 
and during the months of December and January the mountains re-echo 
with the sound of the blows as one ram rushes against the head of another. 
The Sardinian mouflon is one of the most difficult animals to approach with 




A MOUFLON FAMILY. 



which I am acquainted. When they are alarmed, or at "gaze," they have 
a habit, or at least the rams have, of placing themselves in the middle of a 
bush, or in the shadow which it casts. The ewes, which are naturally less 
conspicuous, do this in a less degree. The mouflon are assisted by the 
wonderful alertness of their eyes. One of their favorite devices is to seek 
for spots on the lee-side of a ridge where the currents of air meet. Here, 



182 



THE STORY OF THE WILD SHEEP. 



and in otherwise favorable positions, they are quite unapproachable. * Occa- 
sionally wild mouflon will desert their own kin to live among tame sheep; 
while sometimes also a motherless domestic lamb has been known to seek 
companionship among a flock of mouflon. 

In conformity with its structure, the bharal of Thibet is intermediate 
in its habits between the sheep and the goats. Like the former, it is found 





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A MOUFLON OF SARDINIA. 



on undulating ground, and- frequently lies down during the day on its 
feeding-ground, though generally amongst stones; but, like the latter, it is 
a splendid climber, perfectly at home on precipitous cliffs, and when alarmed 
takes refuge in ground inaccessible to man. It is found in herds of from 
eight or ten to fifty or even a hundred; the males and females being generally 



THE STORY OF THE WILD SHEEP. 



183 



found apart in the summer, but frequently associating together at all seasons. 
The herds keep to high, open ground above forest, and never even enter 
bush. They feed and rest alternately during the day. Owing to their color 
it is peculiarly difficult to make them out when they are lying down amongst 
stones. It appears that these animals are never found below an elevation 
of ten thousand feet above the sea-level, while in summer they range up 
to fourteen thousand, and sixteen thousand feet. Bharal are by no means 
difficult of approach in districts where they have not been much disturbed, 




"big horns" of the rocky mountains. 



and on one occasion in Ladak I came suddenly upon a flock of five rams 
lying asleep in an unfrequented path. 

The Barbary, or maned sheep, which is the only wild representative of 
the group met with in Africa, w'lile agreeing with the bharal in the general 
character of its horns and skull, is distinguished by the great mass of long 
hair clothing the throat, chest, and fore-limbs, and likewise by the great 
length of the thickly-haired tail, which reaches slightly below the hocks. 



184 



THE STORY OF THE WILD SHEEP. 



The Barbary sheep attains a height of rather over three feet, and is" of a 
nearly uniform pale yellow color. 

The Arabs are in the habit of pitching their tents near the scanty springs 
frequented by these sheep, and daily lead their goats high up the mountains. 
Consequently, the animals have no means of escaping from them, as every 




in 

'II 



BARBARY, OR MANED SHEEP. 



mountain within reach of water is similarly infested. They are constantly 
within sight and hearing of the Arabs and their goats, and as they cannot get 
away they have developed the art of hiding themselves to an extraordinary 
extent, and they have unlimited confidence in their own invisibility. 



• THE MUNGOOSE 



Where Found in Africa — An All-around Fighter — Hater of Snakes — Kills a Poisonous 
Cobra — Clears Cuba and Porta Rico of Rats. 



No traveler who is at all observant can fail to meet in the Masai steppe, 
which covers a great part of British East Africa, a graceful, marten-like 
animal, the mungoose. There are several species of them, different in color 
and size, varying from a good-sized weasel to a full-grown cat. They are 
often found living in ant-hills together with the ground-squirrels. The mun- 
goose is social in its habits and often herds of these animals ravage the steppe, 
devouring everything eatable, plants as well as animals. In its rapid move- 
ments a string of mungoose often resembles a big, moving snake. To watch 
these agile animals affords a great deal of amusement. When they suspect 
danger they all run for home — that is, the termite-hill — and keep in hiding 
for hours. But by and by first one, then a second, and finally all poke their 
noses out of their little holes, venture out and about their stronghold, leaping 
and skipping, running in and out as if playing hide and seek. 

An African traveler who has spent many years in the tropics of the dark 
Continent gives the following interesting details as to the natural history of the 
Mungoose. Says he : 

,To my mind the best all-around rough-and-ready fighter, of his size, 
in the animal kingdom is the mungoose. In India this little creature^ de- 
lights in nothing so much as to meet a cobra, the most deadly of all snakes. 

The mungoose is about the size of a cat. It lies in wait for its hered- 
itary enemy, or rather victim, for the fight always has one ending, and 
when the serpent comes into range attacks with a desperation born of the 
knowledge of the cobra's venomous bite. His mode of attack is to tease 
the snake into darting at him, when with inconceivable rapidity he pounces 
on the reptile's head. 

Much has been written as to the combats of both the Egyptian and the 
Indian mungoose with venomous snakes, and also as to the alleged immu- 
nity of these animals from snake poison. The prevalent belief throughout 
oriental countries is that the mungoose, when bitten, seeks for an antidote, 
a herb or root known in India as manguswail. It is scarcely necessary to 
say that the story is destitute of foundation. There is, however, another 
view, supported by some evidence, that the mungoose is less susceptible to 
snake poison than other animals. I have not seen many combats, but, so 
far as I can judge from the few I have witnessed, the mungoose escaped 

185 



186 



THE STORY OF THE MUNGOOSE. 



being bitten by his wonderful activity. He appears to wait till the -snake 
makes a dart at him, and then suddenly pounces upon the reptile's head 
and crunches it to pieces. I have seen a mungoose eat up the head and 
poison glands of a large cobra, so the poison must be harmless to the 
mucous membrane of the former animal. When excited; the mungoose 
erects its long stiff hair, and it must be very difficult for a snake to drive 
its fangs through this and. through the thick skin which all kinds of mun- 




HOW THE MUNGOOSE FIGHTS. 

(Killing a Cobra and attacking a Great Bustard.) 



gooses possess. In all probability a mungoose is very rarely scratched by 
the fangs, and, if- he is, very little poison can be injected. It has been 
repeatedly proved by experiments that a mungoose can be killed, like any 
other animal, if properly bitten by a venomous snake, though even in this 
case the effects appear to be produced after a longer period than with other 
mammals of the same size. 

In addition to being: a benefactor to the human race as a destrover of 



THE STORY OF THE MUNGOOSE. 



187 



poisonous snakes, the Indian mungoose (like its Egyptian cousin) is equally 
valuable as an exterminator of rats, ships having more than once been 
cleared of those pests in a comparatively short period by the introduction 
of a mungoose. About twenty years ago the sugar-planting industry in 
Jamaica was threatened with annihilation from the damage inflicted on the 
canes by a particular species of rat, which absolutely swarmed in the island. 
After ferrets, toads and ants had been tried with more or less ill-success 
to stay the plague, the Indian mungoose was introduced. In the spring 
of 1872 nine of these animals were imported and let loose in the island. 



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INDIAN MUNGOOSES. 



Within a few months young ones were seen about, and in less than six 
months there was evidence, clear and certain, that the rats were much less 
destructive than they had ever been known. Fewer rats were caught and 
fewer canes were destroyed, month after month. Within two years the 
expenditure in killing rats ceased almost entirely, and in another year the 
planters enjoyed relief and immunity; and ever since the losses from rats 
have been a mere trifle. Within a very short time neighboring islands 
found a similar benefit. The mungoose has been subsequently introduced, 
with equally satisfactory results, into Cuba, and America's new possession, 
Porto Rico. 



188 THE STORY OF THE MUNGOOSE. 

The mungoose is easily tamed and in India is kept for the purpose of 
driving the cobra from the residences of the wealthy inhabitants. Snake- 
charmers carry the animal about with them. I at one time owned one 
which always accompanied me in my hunting trips. Whenever I shot birds 
the little fellow would stand on his hind legs when he saw me present the 
gun, and run for the bird when it fell. He had, however, no notion of 
retrieving, but would scamper off with his prey to devour it at leisure. He 
was a most fearless little fellow, and once attacked a big greyhound, who 
beat a retreat. In a rage his body would swell to nearly twice its size, from 
the erection of the hair; yet I had him under such perfect subjection that 
I had only to hold up my finger to him when he was about to attack any- 
thing, and he would desist. I heard a great noise one day outside my 
room, and found "Pips" attacking a fine male specimen I had of the great 
bustard, which he had just seized by the throat. I rescued the bird, but 
it died of its injuries. Through the carelessness of my servants he was lost 
one day in a heavy brushwood jungle some miles from my camp, and I 
quite gave up all hope of recovering my pet. Next day, however, in track- 
ing some antelope, we happened to cross the route taken by my servants, 
when we heard a familiar little yelp, and down from a tree we were under 
rushed "Pips." 

The true mungooses have long, weasel-like bodies, and a more or less 
elongated tail, which is generally thick at the root, and may be covered with 
long hair, its general color being like that of the body, but the tip often 
darker. The longer hairs of almost all the mungooses are marked with 
alternate darker and lighter rings, which communicate a peculiar and char- 
acteristic speckled appearance to the fur. The head has a pointed muzzle, 
with a rather short nose, in which there is a groove on the completely naked 
under surface. The ears are small and rounded. The limbs are likewise 
of extreme shortness, the feet being provided with five toes, of which the 
first, both in front and behind, is extremely small. These toes are gener- 
ally detached, but may be slightly connected by a small web at their bases. 
The under surfaces of the fore feet are generally naked, while in most cases 
only the front part of the soles of the hind feet are free from hair. 

The meerkat, as the South African mungoose is known, is a small animal 
of slender form, with a tail of about half the length of the head and body. 
The fur is long and soft, of a light grizzled gray color, with black transverse 
stripes across the hinder part of the back, and the tail yellowish, with a black 
tip. The longer hairs are broadly ringed with black and white, the white 



THE STORY OF THE MUNGOOSE. 



189 



predominating. The transverse light and dark bands on the loins are 
formed by the regular arrangement of the hairs, by which the white and 
black rings come opposite to each other on adjacent hairs. Meerkats may 
be distinguished at a glance from all other mungooses by their elongated 
nose and claws, as well as by their peculiar coloration, no other species 
having ears differing in color from the rest of the head. 

South African meerkats appear to be confined to Cape Colony, extend- 
ing at least as far north as Algoa Bay. These animals form most admirable 




SOUTH AFRICAN MUNGOOSES OR MEERKATS. 



and amusing little pets, nearly every homestead having one or more of these 
creatures. In their wild state the meerkats live in colonies or warrens, 
burrowing deep holes in the sandy soil, and feeding chiefly on succulent 
bulbs which they scratch up with the long, curved black claws on their 
fore feet. They are devoted sun-worshippers, and in the early morning, 
before it is daylight, they emerge from their burrows, and wait in rows till 
their divinity appears, when they bask joyfully in his beams. They are very 
numerous on the arru, and, as you ride or drive along through the veldt, 
you often come upon little colonies of them sitting up sunning themselves, 



190 THE STORY OF THE MUN GOOSE. 

and looking-, in their quaint and pretty favorite attitude, like tiny dogs beg- 
ging. As you approach they look at you fearlessly and impudently, allow- 
ing you to come quite close; then, when their confiding manner has tempted 
you to get down in the wild hope of catching one of them, suddenly all pop 
so swiftly into their little holes that they seem to have disappeared by magic. 

Although in the Cape it appears that the name meerkat is also often 
applied to the thick-tailed mungoose, it is the true meerkat alone which 
makes such a charming pet. The quaint, old-fashioned little fellow is as 
neatly made as a small bird; his coat, of the softest fur, with markings not 
unlike those of a tabby cat, is always well kept and spotlessly clean; his tiny 
feet, ears and nose are all most daintily and delicately finished off, and the 
broad circle of black bordering his large dark eye serves to enhance the size 
and brilliancy of the orbs. 

The most typical representative of the mungoose family is the Egyptian 
mungoose or ichneumon, inhabiting Africa, north of the Sahara Desert, 
Palestine, Asia Minor, and the southern portions of Spain. It was one of 
the sacred animals of the ancient Egyptians, and is often depicted on their 
frescoes. It feeds largely upon the eggs of crocodiles, although this habit 
has not been recorded of any of the Indian species. It was, and I believe 
still is, domesticated in Egypt; and has the same antipathy to snakes alluded 
to under the head of the common Indian species. The Egyptian mungoose 
is a large species; the length of the head and body being about twenty 
inches. 



THE CARACAL-AFRICAN LYNX 

A Sportsman's Stories About the African Lynx — Tamed Cubs — The Lynx Catching Jack- 
Rabbits — Its Valuable Fur — It Catches Birds on the Wing — "Lynx-eyed." 



Our ex-President once in awhile happened to come across the East African 
representative of the lynx family — the caracal. It is a rare chance to meet this 
animal in day-time, for it comes out of the bush chiefly at night. Once, says a 
famous hunter, I was watching pygmy antelopes on the velt when I saw, not 
more than sixty feet from me, a lynx looking out for the same game. I did 
not mean to let my chance slip and shot it on the spot. 

Another time I was still more fortunate. Not far from my camp on the 
steppe I had noticed about sixty-four ostriches. As they were marching, I 
merely observed them with my field glass. One day, however, I could not 
resist the temptation and decided to shoot a male bird, which I meant to 
present to the Royal Museum in my native country. I singled out one and, 
approaching within six hundred feet, fired. The bird flapped its wings and 
fell. The same moment something began to move within the bush which 
served me as cover. I was startled and also considerably scared, for I thought 
I had disturbed the most dangerous of felines — a leopard — in its lair. It was, 
however, a lynx, which tried to escape, but which fell a victim to the second 
bullet of my double-barreled rifle. This was luck, indeed ; a fine double shot — 
an ostrich and a lynx. 

In my various travels I have met and studied no less than twenty species of 
lynx. The true lynx, that makes its home in Europe and northern Africa, is 
the best representative of the general class, but the American species have 
many similar characteristics. 

The body is always marked with small black spots during the summer. In 
some instances, perhaps in young animals only, these spots continue during 
the winter. This, however, appears to ; occur only among the lynxes of 
Europe; those of Asia having the winter dress without spots, except on the 
flanks and limbs, while they may be also wanting there. The hairs of the 
fur vary in color in different parts of their length, and are tipped with black. 
The ears are gray on the outsides, with black margins, tips, and tufts. Occa- 
sionally the under-parts of the body are spotted. The length of a full-grown 
lynx is thirty-three inches, exclusive of the tail, which measures only seven 
and three-quarters inches ; but the length of the head and body may be upwards 
of forty inches. 

191 



192 



THE STORY OF THE LYNX. 



In Ladak, where the lynx is a rare animal, but seldom seen by Europeans, 
its chief food appears to consist of the blue hares which occur in swarms in 
many of the higher valleys. One summer when shooting at a high elevation 
near Hanle, in Spiti, I suddenly came upon a female lynx with two cubs. I 
shot the mother, and as the cubs concealed themselves among some rocks, I 
barricaded them in, and went on with my hunting. On arriving in camp, I 
sent back men to try and catch the cubs; in this they succeeded, and brought 
them back to me. They were about the size of half-grown cats, and more 




THE CARACAL OR DESERT LYNX. 



spiteful, vicious little devils cannot be imagined; they were, however, very 
handsome, with immense heads and paws. For two or three days they re- 
fused all food, but at the end of that time they fed quite ravenously from the 
hand. 

The Canada lynx is a native of North America, and is remarkable for 
its gait. Its method of progression is by bounds from all four feet at once, 
with the back arched. It feeds principally on the American hare, as it is not 
courageous enough to attack the larger quadrupeds. Its length is about three 



THE STORY OF THE LYNX. 



193 



feet. The Indians sometimes eat its flesh, which is white and firm, and not 
unlike that of the American hare itself. Its skin forms an important article of 
commerce, and between seven and nine thousand are exported annually by 
the Hudson's Bay Company. 

The pardine or Southern European lynx is, perhaps, the handsomest rep- 
resentative of the entire group, its fur being distinctly spotted at all seasons 




THE CANADA LYNX. 



of the year. The color of the body is yellowish above, and white beneath; 
the rounded black spots occurring on the body, tail and limbs. From the ex- 
amination of the skin alone I regard this animal merely as a southern spotted 
variety of the common lynx, analogous to the spotted and banded southern 
varieties of the American bay lynx. An examination of the skull showed, 
however, some differences from that of the northern lynx. 



194 THE STORY OF THE LYNX. 

This lynx is found in Europe in Spain, Sicily > Sardinia, Greece and Tur- 
key. Its habits are probably very similar to those of the northern species. 

The foxy-colored cat known as the caracal is a species of lynx, and agrees 
with the latter in its long limbs, penciled ears, and the characters of its teeth ; 
but in its longer tail, absence of a ruff round the throat, and less close and 
thick fur, it resembles the caffre-cat. The transition from the typical cats 
to the lynxes is, therefore, complete. The caracal is sometimes called the 
desert lynx. 

In addition to its long limbs it is characterized by its slender build, the 
length of the tail being equal to one-third of that of the hind leg and body, 
and by the long tufts of black hair surmounting the long ears. The length of 
the head and body varies from 26 to 30 inches, and that of the tail from 9 
to 10 inches; the height at the shoulder being from 16 to 18 inches. 

This species is sometimes known as the Persian, and at others as the red 
lynx, but the latter name is properly applied to a North American variety 
of the true lynx. Although a rare animal everywhere, the caracal is spread 
over the greater part of India, with the exception of Bengal, the Malabar 
coast, and the Eastern Himalaya. It is unknown to the eastward of the 
Bay of Bengal, but towards the southwest it is found in Mesopotamia, and 
perhaps the Persian highlands. It is also found in Arabia; and over a large 
portion of Africa it is the sole representative of the lynxes. 

We have little or no information as to the habits of the caracal in Africa, 
and only a scant record of its mode of life in India. I know, however, that 
it dwells among grass and bushes, rather than in forests. Its prey consists 
largely of gazelles, the smaller species of deer, hares, pea-fowl, florican, 
cranes, and other birds; and so active is the creature, that it has the power 
of springing up and capturing birds on the wing at a height of five or six 
feet above the ground. The caracal is easily tamed, and in some parts of 
India is trained to capture several of the animals mentioned above as forming 
its natural prey. It is a favorite amusement among the natives to let loose 
a couple of tame caracals among a flock of pigeons feeding on the ground, 
when each of them will strike down as many as ten birds before the flock 
can escape. It is believed that the expression "lnyx-eyed" owes its origin 
to this species. 



HIPPOPOTAMUS HUNTING 

Colonel Roosevelt's Thrilling Adventure and Narrow Escape on Lake Naivasha — He 
Kills Two Huge Hippopotami. 



The 'hippopotamus is one of Africa's most interesting pachyderms. While 
found in the vicinity of almost every lake and river in East Africa, these 
survivors from a past period of the earth's history are getting less and less 
numerous. Consequently our former President was very anxious to secure 
a good specimen for our National Museum. His first attempts, however, 
were rather disappointing. While stopping as a welcome guest at the ex- 
tensive hunting grounds of Captain F. Attenborough and his brother on the 
beautiful volcanic Naivasha Lake he at last got a chance to satisfy his desire. 
His hospitable hosts, who have built an artificial lake on their magnificent 
estate, wherein they have two or three dozen hippopotami, insisted that the 
Colonel supply himself from this easily accessible store. But our Rough Rider 
found this method of hunting in Africa altogether too tame and set out on 
the lake alone, only accompanied by two of his native gunbearers. 

Hunting hippopotami is a very dangerous sport, for the beast is as familiar 
with his watery domain as a fish, and often will keep under the water so as 
to be invisible to the hunter, though he may be in the immediate vicinity of 
the boat. Sometimes he will swim right under the boat and by a sudden jerk 
throw the hunters overboard before they have time to realize their danger. 
The chances of escape in such a case are very slight. 

The Colonel had made up his mind not to leave Lake Naivasha until he 
had secured a fine specimen for the expedition. For several hours his search 
was in vain. In his small row-boat he had already covered several miles of 
his watery hunting grounds and had reached a distant and isolated part of 
the lake, far away from his safari, when suddenly the calm surface was vio- 
lently disturbed as by a tempest and high billows were rising all around. Our 
sportsman had at last struck upon a school of hippopotami. The huge un- 
wieldy beasts were apparently not less surprised than the Colonel. There were 
a whole dozen of them and they crowded in upon the small skiff from all sides, 
threatening to overturn it and throw the men overboard. If the frenzied 
brutes had succeeded in their mad fury in upsetting the raft both the ex-Presi- 
dent and his frightened oarsmen would have met with instantaneous death. 
The two terror-stricken boatmen fully realized the danger, but were too fright- 

195 



196 HIPPOPOTAMUS HUNTING. 

ened to pay attention to Mr. Roosevelt's commands. Had they been alone they 
surely would have been lost. But the Colonel realized that to lose one's head 
in such a situation is to lose one's life. He threw his heavy rifle to his shoulder 
and sent a solid "405" Winchester bullet over the heads of his crouching and 
trembling porters right through the brain of the nearest hippo, a magnificent 
cow, which seemed to be the head of the herd. The buzzing missile killed 
the huge beast outright, and another bullet performed the same service to a 
gigantic bull, which seemed intent upon taking a speedy and bloody revenge 
on the slayer of his mate. Two monster beasts were floating dead at only a 
few yards' distance from the boat and the rest disappeared from view like 
magic, for these colossal animals possess the power of diving under the water 
at will and can bear submersion so long that when they need to come to the 
surface again for breathing they are too far away to be successfully pursued. 
The Colonel's oarsmen were so frightened that he had great difficulty in 
getting them to approach the two beasts even after they were killed. 

The large bull bagged by Mr. Roosevelt was fourteen feet in length. Its 
head "was about the size of a big traveling trunk. To hit such a big head is of 
course easy, but to pierce the brain box is difficult because of its small size as 
compared with the head. A hippo brain weighs only two or three pounds. 

Meanwhile the Colonel's long absence from the camp had caused no little 
anxiety and his party had set out in a steam launch in search of their lost 
leader. They did not get back to the camp until next morning, however, for 
the two carcasses had to be towed in, as they were too valuable to be left adrift 
till next day and perhaps lost. They were the finest specimens the expedition 
had secured so far. 

The hippopotamus is chiefly hunted on account of his tusks, which supply 
the trade with high-grade ivory, which is mostly used in the manufacture of 
artificial teeth. A hippo tooth weighs about five pounds and is worth from 
six to ten dollars. Its black hide is also used for various purposes. The na- 
tives cover their shields with it, for it is impregnable to an arrow and to an 
ordinary rifle bullet too. From the hippo hide is also made the famous sjam- 
bok, a most effective African whip used on oxen and natives and comparable 
only with the Russian knout. It was an instrument of this kind which a na- 
tive chief advised Dr. Livingstone to use in converting the natives, as he 
thought preaching was too slow a method. 

Upon the party's return to the camp the two huge beasts were pulled out 
of the water by a crowd of about 150 natives. One of our illustrations shows 
a group of natives around the carcass of the huge monster preparing to land 



198 



HIPPOPOTAMUS HUNTING. 



it. They are always very willing to assist a hunter who is out for hippo- 
potamus, for they are very fond of its meat. Colonel Roosevelt treated his 
native gunbearers to a feast on hippopotamus fat and meat, and after the 
huge animals were pulled high and dry the flesh was cut into small pieces by 
the hyena-like hungry aboriginals and eaten raw, while Prof. Edmund Heller, 
the skilled taxidermist of the party, went to work right away to preserve the 
hides for the Smithsonian Institution and to scrape the flesh from the bones 
so as to get their skeletons in good shape for the museum. 

Another illustration shows the natives at work pulling the beast along 
after it was landed. The picture and the great number of natives required to 




Photo., Underwood. 



DRAGGING THE HIPPO TO SHORE, 



HIPPOPOTAMUS HUNTING. 201 

move the body give our reader an idea of the size and weight of this gigantic 
beast. Strange to say the native women never track the hippo nor eat its meat 
for fear of becoming barren. Females represented on opposite page are 
women of the Kaviondo tribe engaged in dragging a hippopotamus head for 
their chief to eat. The head is considered a morsel of "delicatessen." 

While the American safari stayed in the Sotik district two of its mem- 
bers, Major Mearns and J. Alden Loring, the naturalist, engaged in an ex- 
pedition to Mount Kenia and collected about 3,600 specimens of birds, in- 
sects and other small animals. In his climb of the mountain Mr. Loring 
reached an altitude of 16,500 feet. The specimens were taken to Mombasa to 
be packed for shipment to America. 

Mount Kenia is an extinct volcano covered with numerous extensive glac- 
iers. Its height is about 17,200 teet. This gigantic mountain rises gradually 
by long gentle slopes and the American expedition found that the fertile soil 
of the mountain sides had attracted numerous European settlers, who found 
the cultivation of plants and vegetables suitable to the climate very profitable. 

The following instructive facts about the African hippopotamus will no 
doubt interest our readers. 

It is related of a former United States Senator from Ohio that he was 
one day at a circus and menagerie, where he was watching the feeding of 
the hippopotamus, when a party, among whom was a dentist, approached. 
The dentist laughingly said: 

"Many's the time I took molars like that fellow has, and put them in 
the mouths of my patients." 

• Pressed to explain what he meant, he stated that the tusks of the hippo- 
potamus were of finest ivory and used in making false teeth. The Senator 
had been an attentive listener to the conversation, and suddenly he was 
seen to shudder and turn pale. Reaching into his mouth he took out a 
plate, and, passing it to the dentist, asked whether the teeth in it were made 
from the hippopotamus' tusks. When he was assured they were, he refused 
to replace them, and never again wore false teeth. A peculiar lisping pre- 
vented his making speeches after that, but no amount of persuasion sufficed 
to overcome his disgust at the teeth. 

The hippopotamus is generally spoken of as a river horse, because that is 
the translation of its Greek name, but "river hog" would be a more truthful 
description. 

Hippopotami are bulky animals, with round, barrel-like bodies of great 



202 THE STORY OF THE HIPPOPOTAMUS. 

length, very short and thick legs, and enormous heads. Indeed, the' ugly 
head of a hippopotamus appears as if it were too large and heavy for its 
owner, since the animal may frequently be seen resting its ungainly muzzle 
on the ground, as though to relieve the neck from the strain of its weight. 

There is, in all probability, but one species of the hippopotamus. It 
inhabits Africa exclusively, and is found in plenty on the banks of many 
rivers in that country, where it may be seen gamboling and snorting at all 
times of the day. 

These animals are quiet and inoffensive while undisturbed; but, if 
attacked, they unite to repel the invader, and I have known them to tear 
several planks from the side of a boat, and sink it. They can remain about 
five or six minutes under water, and, when they emerge, they make a loud 
and very peculiar snorting noise, which can be heard at a great distance. 

In size the full-grown hippopotamus is equal to the rhinoceros. In form 
it is uncouth, the body being extremely large, fat, and round; the legs are 
very short and thick; the mouth extremely wide, and teeth of vast strength 
and size. The eyes and ears are small. The whole animal is covered with 
short hair, thinly set, and is of a brownish color. The hide is in some parts 
two inches thick, and not much unlike that of the hog. 

From the unwieldiness of his body, and the shortness of his legs, the 
hippopotamus is not able to move fast upon land, and is then an extremely 
timid animal. If pursued it takes to the water, plunges in, sinks to the 
bottom, and there walks at ease. It cannot, however, continue long without, 
rising for air, though, if threatened with danger, it does this so cautiously 
that the place where its nose is raised above the surface of the water is 
scarcely perceptible. 

If wounded, the hippopotamus will rise and attack boats or canoes with 
reat fury, and will often sink them by biting large pieces out of their sides. 
In shallow rivers it makes deep holes in the bottom, in order to conceal its 
great bulk. When it quits the water it usually puts out half its body at 
once, and smells and looks round; but sometimes rushes out with great 
impetuosity, and tramples down everything in the way. During the night 
it leaves the rivers to feed on sugar-canes, rushes, millet or rice, of which it 
consumes great quantities. 

The Egyptians are said to adopt a singular mode of destroying this 
voracious animal. They mark the places it frequents, and there deposit a 
quantity of peas. When the beast comes ashore, hungry and voracious, it 
eagerly devours the peas, which causes a thirst. It then rushes into the 



THE STORY OF THE HIPPOPOTAMUS. 



203 



water, and drinks so copiously that the peas in its stomach, being fully 
saturated, swell so much as soon afterwards to cause his death. Among 
the Kaffirs in the south of Africa the hippopotamus is sometimes caught by 
means of pits. 




THE HIPPOPOTAMUS. 



The gait of this animal, when undisturbed, is generally so slow and 
cautious that it often smells out the snare, and avoids it. The most cer- 
tain method is to watch at night, behind a bush close to its path, and strike 
it in the knee joints with a sword. 



204 THE STORY OF THE HIPPOPOTAMUS. 

The ancient Egyptians were in the habit of harpooning the hippopota- 
mus, and this custom is still kept up by the Sudanis on the upper Nile. The 
usual plan when a party of these animals has been observed in the river, is 
for a couple of hunters, each armed with a harpoon to which a line is 
attached, to enter the river some distance above, and swim cautiously down 
on the herd. When within striking distance, both men hurl their weapons 
at the same time. To each is attached a wooden float, which marks the 
position of the animal while below the surface, and the chase is taken up 
by other hunters on the bank armed with harpoons and lances. By an 
ingenious arrangement, the float is at length captured by a rope and the' 
animal dragged to shore, where it is despatched with lances. This, however, 
is frequently not accomplished without the death of one or more of the 
intrepid hunters. In Central Africa, on the other hand, the hippopotamus 
is harpooned from canoes. In other parts the favorite method is to suspend 
a weighted spear, frequently tipped with poison, over a branch of a tree 
near the tracks of the hippopotamus, and to make fast the end of the line, 
to which it is attached to stakes on either side of the path. When the 
animal comes along, it strikes against the line, the stakes are loosened, and 
tlie heavy spear ccmes down with a thud on its head or back. 



THE WILD BOAR 

Boars Often Mistaken For Lions — Dangerous Sport for Hunters — Furious Charge on Horses, 
Elephants and Camels — Fight Between a Wild Pig and a Snake. 



While North Africa is the home of a wild hog resembling the European 
variety, in the countries south of the Sahara are found several other species 
of wild hogs. One was found by Colonel Roosevelt near many rivers in the 
more settled parts of British East Africa, another in the vast Masai districts. 
He found the hunt of a strong, full-grown wild boar both exciting and profit- 
able, for its savory flesh was a welcome addition to the bill of fare of his 
safari, and its tusks are valuable trophies. "The wild hog does a great deal 
of damage to< our plantations and fields, rooting and eating the fruits at night- 
time," said an African settler toi our ex-President. 

While its eyes are weak, its hearing and sense of smell are keen. Boars 
fleeing through the high grass or through thickets, have often been mistaken 
for lions by the natives. The bristles on their back, often over twelve inches 
long, seen from a distance, really suggest a lion's mane. 

The wild hog, or boar, inhabits many parts of Europe, especially the 
forests of Germany, where the chase of the wild boar is a common amuse- 
ment It has become extinct in this country for many years. Its tusks 
are terrible weapons, and capable of being used with fatal effect. They 
curve outwards from the lower jaw, and are sometimes eight or ten inches in 
length. In India, where the boar attains to a great size, the horses on which 
the hunters are mounted often refuse to bring their riders within spear stroke 
of the infuriated animal, and I have seen it kill a horse, and severely injure 
the rider with one sweep of its enormous tusks. 

The wild boar is distinguished by a body generally of dusky-brown or 
grayish color, having a tendency to> black, and being diversified with black 
spots. The front teeth or tusks in the male are long and powerful, and 
project beyond the upper lip, the mouth is large, and the elongated head is 
set on a short, neck rising out of a thick and muscular body. The size is 
variable, an old wild boar, measured by a hunter, being five feet nine inches 
long, while a four-year-old of the more ordinary size measured three feet 
without the tail. The female is smaller than the male and with smaller 
tusks. The hairs of the body are coarse, intermixed with downy wool. 
On the neck and shoulders the hair takes the form of bristles, being long 
enough to be called a kind of mane which the animal is enabled to erect if 

205 



206 



THE STORY OF THE WILD BOAR. 



irritated. The young has the body marked with stripes of a reddish color 
running lengthwise. 

The lower tusks of the male wild boar, which project about three inches 
from the jaw, and are kept with edges as sharp as razors by wear against 
those of the upper jaw, are most formidable weapons, capable of ripping open 
a horse at a single stroke. Both the European and the Indian species are 
among the boldest and fiercest of all animals, charging men, horses, or ele- 
phants time after time without a moment's hesitation, and in spite of the 
most desperate wounds. Indeed, the injuries that a wild boar will sustain 




EAST AFRICAN WILD HOG. 



without loss of life are perfectly marvelous. I once killed an old boar, in the 
skull of which the broken extremity of the tusk of another boar was firmly 
embedded, with its point penetrating into the brain-cavity a short distance 
behind the left eye. 

Although the speed of a wild pig is considerable, yet it cannot be main- 
tained for any long distance, and accordingly, either a boar or a sow may 
be easily overtaken by a well-mounted horseman after a comparatively short 



THE STORY OF THE WILD BOAR. 



207 



run. Both as regards speed and inclination to fight there is, however, con- 
siderable local variation among the wild pigs of India; the large, heavily- 
built animal found in Bengal being much more disposed to> show fight than 
the lighter pig of the Punjab, which has a greater turn of speed. In spite 
of its boldness, the Indian wild boar seldom makes unprovoked attacks; but 
when once roused nothing will stop it. An instance is on record of a boar 
charging, overthrowing, and ripping open a camel; and there are several 




A FAMILY OF WILD HOGS. 



well-authenticated cases of boars having attacked and killed or beaten off 
tigers. 

The curious Japanese masked pig has an extraordinary appearance, from 
its short head, broad forehead, and nose, great fleshy ears and deeply- 
furrowed skin. Not only is the face furrowed, but thick folds of skin, which 
are harder than the other parts, almost like the plates on the Indian rhinoc- 



208 



THE STORY OF THE WILD BOAR. 



eros, hang about the shoulders and rump. It is colored black, with white 
feet, and breeds true. That it has long been domesticated there can be 
little doubt; and this might have been inferred even from the circum- 
stance that its young are not longitudinally striped. 

The extraordinary development of the tusks in the males of the animal 
to which the Malays have given the name of Babirusa (meaning pig-deer) 
is so remarkable as to suggest at first sight the idea of a malformation. The 
babirusa, which, is an inhabitant of Celebes and Boru,' and is the sole repre- 







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Bni&i'' ^F^f 5 


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'■m 








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WILD HOG OF THE PHILIPPINES. 



sentative of its genus, has, indeed, derived its name from these abnormally- 
developed tusks, which have led the Malays to liken them to the antlers 
of the deer. In the boars the upper tusks, while curving upwards like those 
of an ordinary wild pig, instead of protruding from the margins of the jaws, 
arise close together near the middle line of the face, and thence, after being 
directed upwards for a short distance, sweep backwards, frequently coming 
into contact with the surface of the forehead, and are then finally directed 



THE STORY OF THE WILD BOAR. 



209 



forwards at the tip. The lower tusks have the same upwards-and-backwards 
direction as those of the upper jaw, but are frequently less strongly curved, 
although in other cases the direction of their sweep is not very different 
from that of the latter. The upper tusks occasionally attain a length of 
fourteen and one-half inches, exclusive of the portion buried in the socket. 
It is a popular belief that pigs are never injured by the poisons of snakes; 
and it is customary to turn a drove of these animals into a district infested 




SOUTH AFRICAN WILD HOG. 



by such reptiles, which in a short time is usually completely cleared of 
them. It is well known that pigs will destroy any rattlesnake they meet 
with, and this serpent is certainly provided with one of the most deadly of 
poisons, and it is a reptile not at all likely to submit to an attack from 
any quarter without using all its powers of defense. It is supposed that the 
pig receives the bite of the enraged snake on its cheek, where the fat and 



210 THE STORY OF THE WILD BOAR. 

gristle are the thickest, and that, as there is little or no blood in that part, 
the poison is not carried through the system, so that the animal experi- 
ences no ill-effects from the virus. Whenever a serpent is spied, the pig, 
with erected bristles, rushes right upon it, and, indifferent to the formidable 
fangs that are perhaps sticking in its own hide, bites the reptile in pieces and 
then devours it. 

I once witnessed a hunt for babirusa by the natives of Celibes. 

The animals being driven into a curral with a V-shaped opening and 
flanked by netting, we had plenty of time to wait before the sport began, 
and meanwhile the natives arranged themselves at their posts. One stood 
at the door of the curral, ready to close it directly any animal rushed in; 
others took up their places on either side of the wide entrance, while 
the remainder crouched in front of the long net at intervals of a few yards, 
each grasping his spear, and hidden from view by a huge Livistonia (a kind 
of palm) frond. We had not long been settled before a peculiar barking 
grunt in the distance announced the arrival of the first victim. Everyone 
was instantly motionless, and directly afterwards a dark object dashed up at 
great speed and buried itself in the net a short way down the slope. There 
was a short struggle, and in less than five minutes the captive, a full-grown 
female babirusa, was quietly reposing on her back, with her legs tied together 
with rattan, and we were once more in ambush for the next comer. We 
were hardly quiet before the same peculiar sound was heard rapidly ap- 
proaching, and the next moment a magnificent old boar babirusa rushed 
past within five yards of us, and plunged into' the net between our tree and 
the entrance to the curral. His long tusks became entangled in the meshes, 
and the natives ran up to spear him. Just at this moment, however, he 
broke loose, and, turning on his antagonists, scattered them in all direc- 
tions. It was a most determined charge, and, as we were unable to fire for 
fear of hitting some of our own men, it might have proved a serious affair 
for the native he singled out. After some trouble the animal was, however, 
finally despatched with a spear-thrust, but, even with four spears buried in 
his body, the old boar died game, striving to the very last to get at his 
antagonists. 



THE PORCUPINE 

A Nocturnal Animal Bristling with Long Spines— Will Not Run From a Foe— Rolls Itself In 
a Ball When Attacked— Cannot Throw Its Quills— Savages Use Quills As Decorations 



The traveler in East Africa never sees one of the strangest inhabitants of 
the velt — the porcupine — unless he takes the trouble to dig- for it, or is favored 
by good fortune. The explanation is a simple one. The habits of the porcu- 
pine are absolutely nocturnal. It spends the day in caves in the earth, from 
which it only issues at night, and into which it retreats before dawn. Plenty 
of quills were found by the American hunting expedition, but they never saw 
the animal itself at large. A few specimens were secured from the natives, 
who had dug them out of their burrows. 

One of them told Mr. Roosevelt that it sometimes takes a whole day to 
secure one single specimen of this little shy and wary creature, whose burrows 
stretch from twenty-five to fifty yards deep in the ground. 

Says a famous hunter: 

1 have a great deal of respect for the porcupine, and I have noticed that 
his fellow animals have a like feeling toward him. In the first place, he 
doesn't meddle with the affairs of others and he very quickly resents any 
attempt to meddle with his affairs. He rarely hunts for a fight and he never 
runs' away from one. In all of the animal kingdom I do not believe there is 
a more fearless creature. 

Conscious of his own powers of defense he seems to have a contempt 
for other animals. In Africa and India lions and leopards attack him and 
often kill him, but only after a hard fight, in which they receive many 
wounds, which sometimes prove fatal, from his long spines, called quills. In 
Western America I have known a mountain lion (puma) toi die of wounds 
received in a fight with a porcupine. The wounds suppurated, causing 
blood-poisoning, resulting in death. The other animals know that the por- 
cupine is not afraid of them and that he is always ready to fight — hence they 
respect him and usually leave him alone. 

The porcupine has long been rendered famous among men by the extra- 
ordinary armory of pointed spears which it bears upon its back, and which 
it was formerly fabled to launch at its foes with fatal precision. This remark- 
able power of the-rugged little creature has been thoroughly exploited and is 
attributable to a real fact, of which few writers take cognizance. When 
attacked the porcupine prepares for defense by rolling itself into a ball, 



211 



212 



THE STORY OF THE PORCUPINE. 



exposing the bristles, but with its feet ready for action. When the assailant 
has approached sufficiently near, the active little animal darts forward, 
hurling- itself against the attacking animal. The spear-like quills find lodge- 
ment in the skin of the assailant, causing in every case a hasty retreat. 

This animal inhabits many parts of the world, being found in Africa, 
Southern Europe and India. The spines, or quills, with which it is furnished, 
vary considerably in length, the longest quills being flexible and not capable 
of doing much harm to an opponent. Beneath these is a plentiful supply 
of shorter spines, from five to ten inches in length, which are the really 
effective weapons of this imposing array. Their hold on the skin is very 
slight, so that when they have been struck into a foe, they remain fixed in 




PORCUPINES OF SIAM. 



the wound, and, unless immediately removed, work sad woe to the sufferer. 
For the quill is so constructed that it gradually bores its way into the flesh, 
burrowing deeper at every movement, often causing the death of the 
wounded creature. 

In Africa and India leopards and tigers have frequently been killed, in 
whose flesh were pieces of porcupine quills that had penetrated deeply into 
the body, and had even caused suppuration to take place. In one instance, 
a tiger was found to have his paws, ears and head filled with the spines of a 
porcupine, which he had been vainly endeavoring to kill. 

As I have said, conscious of its powers, the porcupine is not at all an 



THE STORY OF THE PORCUPINE. 



213 



aggressive animal, and seldom, if ever, makes an unprovoked attack. But 
if irritated or wounded, it becomes at once a very unpleasant antagonist, as 
it spreads out its bristles widely, and rapidly backs upon its opponent. 

I have witnessed the successful defense of the animal on a number of 
occasions. Being - one moonlight night with a party in search of porcupines 
with dogs, we had not been out long ere we discovered a hole inhabited by 
these quadrupeds. A dog was immediately put to it. The animal had not 
gone many paces, when he howled and retreated with several quills in his 
body. One in particular was driven an inch into his right leg. The porcu- 
pine, on the approach of the dog, drew itself into the shape of a ball, and, 
darting forward with all its strength, drove its quills into the dog. We were 




PORCUPINES OF MOROCCO. 



forced to give up the fight, and the porcupine saved his life by the desperate 
fight made against our dogs. 

The total length of the common porcupine is about three feet six inches, 
the tail being about six inches long. Its gait is plantigrade, slow and clumsy, 
and as it walks its long quills shake and rattle in a very curious manner. Its 
muzzle is thick and heavy, and its eyes small and piglike. 

The American Indians use the quills extracted from the Canada porcu- 
pine, a species living on trees, for ornamenting various parts of their dress, 
especially their moccasins or skin shoes. The length of this species is about 
two feet. It is found in many parts of the United States as well as in Canada. 



2U THE STORY OF THE PORCUPINE. 

It is capable of depressing the bristling spears, and can squeeze itself through 
an opening which would appear at first sight to be hardly large enough to 
permit the passage of an animal of only half its size. 

When one of these animals has selected and settled himself in a tree to 
his liking, he may not leave it, day or night, until he has denuded it of the 
whole of its foliage. I have seen many hemlocks thus completely stripped, 
not a green twig remaining, even on the smallest bough. It seems incred- 
ible that so large and clumsy an animal should be able to climb out far 
enough on the branches of trees to reach the terminal leaves; but he dis- 
tributes his weight by bringing several branches together, and then, with 
his powerful paws, bends back their ends and passes them through his mouth. 
When high in the tree-tops he is often passed unnoticed, mistaken, if seen 
at all, for the nest of a crow or a hawk. 

The Mexican tree-porcupine belongs to a family which has hair so long 
as almost to conceal the spines. It is easily distinguished by the uniform 
black color of the fur, and also by the presence of numerous spiny bristles 
mingled with the hair of the lower parts of the body. These bristles arise 
in small clusters, and being white for the greater part of their length, form 
star-like spots among the dark fur. These bristles and the spines on the 
back are black at the tips. 

This species inhabits the forests on the eastern coasts of Mexico. Noth- 
ing special is recorded of its habits; but from observations made on captive 
individuals it is probable that none of the tree-porcupines ever drink. It 
is stated that in those long-haired species in which the fur is of a grayish 
tint, the general appearance of the animal when reposing* on the arm of 
a tree closely resembles a gnarled and lichen-clad knot. 

The brush-tailed porcupine, of which one species inhabits Western and 
Central Africa, and the other Burma and the Malayan region, are much 
1 smaller and more rat-like animals than the true porcupines, from which 
they are distinguished at a glance. 

A species of porcupine has been discovered in Borneo, distinguished 
by its short spines. 

From the large size of their teeth and jaws, porcupines have great 
gnawing powers, and .the writer has seen in India tusk of elephants which 
have been half-eaten by these animals as they lay in the jungles. The flesh 
of porcupines is excellent eating, and resembles something between pork 
and veal in flavor. 







THE STORY OF THE WAPI. 



On the Semliki River, near the borders of the great Congo forest, I 
first heard of and later saw one of the queerest animals in. the known world. 
The natives called it the wapi, but a naturalist of the present day, who has 
learned much about it, has given it the name of okapi. 

A little to the east end of the middle of Africa is a chain of lakes running 
nearly north and south. The great Lake Tanganyika is the southernmost, 
north of this is Lake Kivu, whose waters flow south into Tanganyika, and 
then passing over a high volcanic range we come to the lake known as the 
Albert Edward Nyanza, stretching northward from the shores of which 
are Mountains of the Moon, the Rewrenzori range. Keeping in the valley 
to the west of this range the traveler passes along the Semliki River, whose 
waters flow northward, and eventually reaches the Albert Nyanza, the source 
of. the Nile. 

The region of the Semliki River is in many respects a most remarkable 
one, A few miles east from its banks are snow mountains 25,000 feet 
high. At no great distance on the west are sources of the Aruwimi, the 
great tributary of the Congo River. To its west, also, for hundreds of miles, 
stretch the northeastern extensions of the great Congo forest. Along the 
shores of the Semliki the British protectorate of Uganda and the Congo Free 
State" meet one another. It is here that Stanley and I saw the distant 

215 



216 THE STORY OF THE WAPI. 

Rewrenzori range and heard from natives of the existence in the forest of 
a large quadruped, neither antelope nor zebra, and as large as a horse. 

It is to this region that Sir Harry Johnston, High Commissioner of 
Uganda, traveled in the autumn of 1900 in order to explore the confines of 
his protectorate before returning home. Sir Harry is an ardent naturalist, 
a really great collector, an observer, and an artist. Many a new bird, beast 
and plant from Kilimanjaro, Nyassaland and Uganda do men of science owe 
to him. On the present occasion he was eager to obtain new things and was 
well equipped for the purpose and well provided with men. He has sent 
rich collections to the Natural History Museum as a result of this journey. 
He was especially anxious to see and if possible secure the enigmatical 
quadruped which I had reported to exist in these forests. 

It must be borne in mind that the larger quadrupeds live in the open 
prairie or frequent only the borders of the African forests, and, further, 
that few of the natives excepting the peculiar dwarfs, the Akkas, penetrate 
far into the gloomy depths of these vast tree-grown regions. Sir Harry 
himself traveled for a week in the dark, steamy recesses of this equatorial 
forest. He describes the sense of mystery and oppression with which the 
solemn gloom, the choking heat, and strange silence filled him as well-nigh 
overpowering. It is not to be wondered at that the blacks avoid these 
primeval fastnesses. 

It is among the trunks of these forests trees, whose foliage is densely 
woven overhead so as to exclude the light of day, that the strange animal 
of which Sir Harry was in search lives, coming here and there to "clear- 
ings" due to the decay and fall of the trees, in order to feed on the foliage. 

It might well be that this dark vapor-laden forest had persisted from 
remote geologic ages, and that strange animals, survivors of pliocene and 
miocene times, still harbored there unknown to man, unchanged, cut off 
from the struggles of the outer world. 

Sir Harry failed to get a sight of the animal, but he obtained from na- 
tives two bands made from its skin, and learned that the animal was called 
by them "okapi." The pieces of skin had the hair preserved, and this was 
colored very dark brown and white in alternate bands, like the pelt of a 
zebra. They were sent home and were considered by Dr. P. L. Sclater, the 
secretary of the Zoological Society of London, to indicate a new kind of 
zebra, to which he gave the name Equus Johnstoni. 

At a station of the Congo Free State, not far from the Semliki River, 
Sir Harry Johnston met the officer in charge, a Mr. Ericsson. This gentle- 






THE STORY OF THE WAPI. 



217 



man promised to do all in his power to obtain a specimen or specimens 
of the okapi for Sir Harry from the natives of his district. Some months 
later, when Sir Harry Johnston had returned to the more civilized portion 
of the Uganda protectorate, he received by messengers from Mr. Ericsson 
a complete skin; including the hoofs, and two skulls of the okapi. 

One of the most remarkable facts in this story is that Sir Harry, with- 




THE WAPI OR OKAPI. 



out access to books and specimens for comparison, such as men of science 
have at their command in European museums, immediately determined 
with complete accuracy the nature of the okapi. He made — and has re- 
cently published — a sketch of the animal, showing it as he supposed, from 
the examination of skin and skull, it would have appeared when living. 
Its cloven hoofs showed that it was not of the zebra tribe, but related to 



218 THE STORY OF THE WAPI. 

the antelopes and giraffes; and Sir Harry went so far as to say that it was 
a short-necked hornless giraffe — similar to the Helladotherium, the bones 
of which have been found at Pikermi, near Athens, and were reconstructed 
as a complete skeleton by Professor Gaudry, of Paris. Sir Harry suggested 
that the okapi must be considered as a living survival of that animal, and 
assigned it to the genus Helladotherium. 

This was extraordinarily correct and sound reasoning. It has been abun- 
dantly confirmed by careful study of the specimen sent to London ex- 
cepting that it has seemed necessary to separate the okapi, on account of 
some minor features in the structure of the skull, from Helladotherium. 
The okapi is now known as Ocapia Johnstoni. 

Sir Harry Johnston at once dispatched the okapi' s skin and two skulls 
to the Natural History Museum. 

He rightly declared this to be the most remarkable discovery in the 
zoology of Africa made in the last hundred years. 

The photographs here reproduced show the animal as set up by Mr. 
Ward and an enlarged view of the head. The shoulder is higher as com- 
pared with the rump than in Sir Harry's restoration, and the neck is some- 
what longer than it seemed to him, and straight as is that of a giraffe. 
Probably the okapi, like the giraffe, carries its neck habitually sloping- 
forward so as to give a continuous straight line from the back of the head 
to the root of the tail. A very interesting feature is the presence of two 
•little tufts on the forehead, which correspond to and represent the horns 
of the giraffe, though they cannot themselves be called horns. An ex- 
amination of the skulls of the okapi show that there is no bony outgrowth 
corresponding to these knobs, although the skull is raised on each side 
above the orbit into a small domelike eminence. 

The coloring and marking of the hairy hide of the okapi is very peculiar. 
Its pattern is well shown in our illustration. The body is of a rich maroon- 
brown color. 

The tract of forest inhabited by the okapi is about as big as the prin- 
cipality of Wales, and there may be some 2,000 or 3,000 head living there. 
It is undoubtedly a true inhabitant of the forest, elusive and difficult to dis- 
cover. Probably we shall soon hear more of it and receive additional speci- 
mens, though it is not likely, on account of its frequenting the forest depths, 
to be threatened or exterminated by too eager sportsmen for long years to 
come. 



THE AFRICAN JACKAL 

The Ancestor of Our Dog — Hunts at Night — Harmless but Kills Chickens, Lambs, Rabbits 
and Small Antelopes. 



In the stillness of the night the members of the American expedition of 
hunters and naturalists often heard near their camp on the African steppe the 
mournful voice of the jackal. It could still be heard in the early morning 
long after all other nocturnal marauders had retreated to their hiding places. 
The jackals are found everywhere on the velt, in daytime as well as at night, 
and are not only seen in company with the hyena, but they are sometimes also 
associated with the lion and the leopard, who, when these followers grow too 
familiar, or when other food is scarce, do< not hesitate to turn on them and 
eat them. 

The jackal is a cunning, wary-animal and, in the fairy tales and fables of 
the tribes of the steppe, plays the same part which we have assigned to our 
"Reynard." the fox, being the embodiment of cunning, smartness and agility — 
the animal which outwits all the rest. 

Several varieties of this beast are met with in different parts of the world. 

In India lives a wolf-like creature called the jackal, which gives a peculiar 
wailing howl As the animal is known to feed on dead bodies, the Anglo- 
Indian version of its howl is as follows: "Dead Hindoo! where, where, 
where!" The jackal has another howl or cry used only when in the vicinity 
of a tiger. I have heard both cries and they are the most peculiar that I can 
recall There is a fable, religiously believed by the natives of India, that the 
jackal acts as a scout for the lion, and that the king of beasts shares the prey 
with his smaller friend. This took its origin from the fact that the lion, 
after eating his fill, leaves the remainder of the carcass, and the skulking 
jackal, finding it, makes his meal from the leavings. 

The jackal is well known both as a prowler and a scavenger, in which 
capacity he is useful, and as a disturber of our midnight rest by his horrible 
yells, in which peculiarity he is to be looked upon as an unmitigated nui- 
sance. He is mischievous, too, occasionally, and will commit havoc among 
poultry and young kids and lambs; but, as a general rule, he is a harmless, 
timid creature, and when animal food fails, he will take readily to vegetables. 
The jackal sometimes feeds on dead bodies, which it digs out of the shallow 
graves made by the natives, and I once came across, in the vicinity of a 
jungle village, the dead body of a child that had been unearthed by a jackal. 



219 



220 



THE STORY OF THE JACKAL. 



One of these would answer to its name, and was remarkable for the 
cleanliness of its habits, being particularly averse to getting its feet wet by; 
rain, seeking during showers the shelter of the huts. As a rule, it never sat 
down on its haunches after the manner of a- dog, but would lie at full length, 
with its nose resting between its fore-paws, and would generally select a 
sunny spot, where it lay blinking in the sunlight. 

The black-backed jackal is a very distinct African species. The adults 




THE EUROPEAN JACKAL. 



of both sexes are brightly colored, the sides of the body being red, the limbs 
and the upper part of the tail reddish yellow; while the back of the body 
and the end of the tail are black. The individual hairs of the body are ringed 
with black and white or red and white, so as to produce a speckled appear- 
ance in the fur. The under parts of the body and the inner sides of the limbs 
are nearly white, the ears and part of the face being yellowish brown. This 
striking coloration occurs, however, only in the full-grown jackals, the fur 



THE STORY OF THE JACKAL. 221 

of the young being a uniform dusky brown. The dark band on the neck so 
often found in the common jackal is absent. The ears are very long. 

This jackal is found both in the open country and in bush jungle. In 
the sandy regions on the shores of the Red Sea it is to be found frequently 
in the small thickets covering the banks of the ravines, which swarm with 
hares and pangolins, upon which the jackal feeds. At night it visits the 
villages of the natives, and in Somaliland it is stated to bite off the fat tails 




ARABIAN WOLF JACKAL 

of the sheep. In the Sudan it lives chiefly upon the smaller antelopes, mice, 
jerboas and other rodents. 

The Asiatic jackals vary considerably in point of size, the length of 
the head and body varying from two to- two and one-half feet. Its general 
color is a pale grayish, with a larger or smaller admixture of black on the 
upper parts. The under parts are paler, and the muzzle, ears and the 
outer sides of the limbs more so than the rest. The reddish brown hairs 



222 



THE STORY OF THE JACKAL. 



of the tail have long black tips, thus forming a distinct black tip to the 
tail itself. The African variety is of rather larger size, with relatively longer 
ears; and the sides of the body are grayer. Occasionally yellow, black and 
white varieties of the jackal have been met with, the latter being true 
albinos. 

The jackal ranges from the southeastern countries of Europe to India 
and Ceylon; thence it extends through Assam to Northern Pegu and the 
neighborhood of Mandalay, although it is much less common east of the 
Bay of Bengal than in India. In Northern Africa it inhabits Egypt and 
Abyssinia, and the districts to the north of the Sahara. In the Himalaya 













•'^B 






" 






\J' 


ML JPs 


^Jiff-- J*&»- 




Njf 


' ■ ; §ra§§Pa ' 


IfiffiBi ' 


.•--. 










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JACKALS OF SIAM 



it ascends to from three to four thousand feet above the sea level. Through- 
out India it may be found indifferently in hilly or plain country, in forest 
or open districts, or in large cities. 

Although jackals are frequently in the habit of. going singly or in pairs, 
they often associate in packs, which may be of considerable size; these 
assemblages being more frequent at night than during the daytime. In 
India the jackal's wanderings are by no means confined to the night. 

In extremely hot weather they appear to suffer much, and may be found 
either lying in the water, where they spend most of the day, or sneaking 
away therefrom, instead of being, as usual, hidden away in their holes. 



THE MONKEY FAMILY 

Roosevelt Bags a White-Tailed Colobus Monkey — Facts About This Curious Animal — ■ 
The Gorilla, the Chimpanzee and Other More or Less Manlike Apes — Africa the 
Paradise of the Monkey. 



When in search for big game in the Sotik district around picturesque 
snow-capped Mount Kenia the American hunting expedition came across 
one of the most interesting varieties of the great family of monkeys — the 
colobus. Mounted on his faithful Tranquillity the Colonel was traversing 
the endless undulating expanses of grassy country, adorned by giant trees, 
which in this volcanic region meet the eye and now and then change into^ 
barren plains, grass-covered plateaus, and deep valleys wedged in between 
craggy ridges and naked rocks. He was in the beautiful Rift valley. Count- 
less voices of the wilderness resounded around him. From all sides, from 
every spot, every direction came cries, mingled with curious chirpings of un- 
known birds, and loud-sounding trumpet-notes from brightly colored winged 
songsters break on the ear. The next moment every sound dies away and 
there is deathlike silence all around. 

But suddenly there broke forth a remarkable sound, rising and again fall- 
ing, as the ex-President listened, a strange music of a most peculiar kind. 
It was the chatter of the colobus monkeys, a sound that cannot be described 
in words. A party of these wonderful creatures seemed to be in good humor, 
for their song came to our hunter in chorus unceasingly, and in rising 
strength, now swelling strongly out, now quietly dying away. The Colonel 
selected a fine old male for the National Museum, and it tumbled down 
from the branches of a tall banana-palm, pierced through the brain by a swift 
rifle bullet, the whole herd precipitously set off at a scare and disappeared in 
the thicket, where they could no more be reached. 

The white-tailed colobus, thus killed by Mr. Roosevelt, is one of the most 
interesting members of the monkey family. It is keenly hunted for the sake 
of its beautiful fur, and its peculiar song often betrays it to the hunter. It 
is shy and retiring, lives in the tops of high trees and feeds chiefly on leaves. 

The colobus monkeys are large, black and white-colored animals with 
long and silky hair, and white brushy tails, their bearded faces having a 
serious and often sad expression. They are found in goodly numbers in the 
Mount Kenia region and in the dense forests of the Mera and Kilimanjaro 
mountain, the snow-clad roof of the African Continent. Our illustration 
shows the highest peak of this majestic mountain, which rises 20,000 feet above 

223 



224 



THE MONKEY FAMILY. 



the level of the sea, at which height it is devoid of any life owing to the'fierce- 
ness of the active elements and the perpetual snow, although three degrees 




From photograph. MOUNT KILIMANJARO. 

south of the equator. Another illustration represents five picked beauties of 
the inhabitants of the dense forests at the foot of the same mountain. The 
native members of Roosevelt's safari told him that these girls are given in 
'marriage for two good milking cows and several jars of native beer made 
out of bananas, and wherewith the wedding is celebrated. "In our country," 
one of the bearers said, "a young man's pride is in having many wives — for 
they represent his wealth which they produce by working for him from sun- 
rise to sundown." 

It is in close proximity of these children of nature that the colobus monkeys 
are living. They can be seen feeding in the morning and evening, stripping 
the twigs of their leaves with their thumbless hands, eating greedily, and 
bellowing all the time. They are arboreal in their habits, living in small 
troops in the tops of gigantic trees, preferring those which are overgrown 
with beardgrass, the whitish-grey color of which blends with the fur of the 
monkeys. When the colobus jumps from branch to branch and from tree- 
top to treetop, extending the long, white tail and spreading the hair of the 




Prom photograph. 

COLOBUS MONKEY. 
A SPECIMEN OF THIS ANIMAL WAS KILLED BY COL. ROOSEVELT IN RIFT VALLEY. 

225 



226 



THE MONKEY FAMILY. 



body, it looks as if the beardgrass were becoming alive and assuming animal 
form to escape into the darkness of the deeper forest. 

Mr. Roosevelt noticed that this tree monkey is not adapted to walking, 




From a recent photograph. 

FIVE BEAUTIES IN THE KILIMANJARO DISTRICT. 

and is seldom seen on the ground. It need not even go to a river to quench 
its thirst, for it finds plenty of water stored up in the hollows of the trees. 
The colobus loves the. solitude of the woods and is rarely seen near human 
habitations. Where it is not hunted, it is full of curiosity, and not over- 
shy. But its fur, unfortunately, is a much-desired article of trade, and there- 
fore the animal is pursued and its numbers greatly diminished by European 
and native hunters, who armed with breech-loading rifles have almost ex- 
terminated it in many of its favorite haunts, so that a few years ago it took 
an experienced African hunter three days to secure three specimens for a 




A MONKEY-BRIDGE. MONKEYS CROSSING A RIVER. 



227 



228 THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 

European museum. Our former President may, therefore, consider him- 
self fortunate in having bagged one of these rare animals. In a not far dis- 
tant future it, no doubt, will be too late, for the war of extermination has 
been carried on even to the remotest mountain forest* to satisfy the demand 
for the fur of the colobus. An African traveler found hundreds of skins 
ready for shipment to Europe by Greek and Indian traders, where they are 
used as trimmings and linings of ladies' winter coats. A missionary told 
him that he himself had hunted eighty animals within a month to sell their 
fur, for which he received from one to two dollars apiece. While its fur 
was "in fashion" hundreds of thousands of the animals were exported to 
Europe to satisfy a passing fancy. Before the European invasion the na- 
tives hunted the colobus only because its fur was used by their warriors to- 
adorn their ankles. 

Now, when Mr. Roosevelt is shipping both, living and dead African 
animals to the Smithsonian Institution and to zoological gardens in many 
of our big cities, it may be of interest to our readers to know that it has not 
always been possible to do so>. 

In former years young colobus monkeys were captured to be raised and 
sent to Europe, but none of the young animals reached their destination 
alive, says the famous African traveler. "I therefore," he continues, "de- 
cided to capture an adult colobus, and I succeeded in slightly wounding and 
in capturing an adult animal. For some time I supplied the monkey with his 
favorite food, fresh leaves and sprouts of the fugara. He refused any other 
nourishment. At last I coaxed him into taking bananas. I selected the 
strongest and most capable of my blacks to take care of the colobus on our 
march to the coast. It was a comical sight to observe the tall black fellow 
marching along, protecting with an improvised parasol his protege, who was 
tied to him by a leather strap. Once in awhile they would have a 'falling 
out.' The whole caravan then stopped and looked on, cheering and teasing 
until the bearer and his .charge had 'made up' again. My troubles with the 
delicate creature were endless. It was not only hard to select suitable food 
for the monkey, but he occasionally showed symptoms of fever, which I 
counteracted by dosing him with quinine. At last I got him safely to the 
coast and transported him to Berlin, where he lived two years in the zoological 
gardens, before he fell a victim to the changed conditions of climate and 
food, and, no doubt, also to homesickness for his native woods." He further 
tells that on another occasion he brought with him three colobus monkeys 



THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 229 

from East Africa to Europe, only one of which reached its destination, where, 
however, she died three days after her arrival. 

The greatest shipment of wild animals direct from the velt and jungle 
of Africa is the gift of five lions, a leopard, and a number of other game, 
unloaded at Washington from the German steamer Malkefels a few days 
before Christmas and presented to the National Museum by former President 
Roosevelt. The work of unloading the beasts was a ticklish undertaking for 
the longshoremen, and a large crowd watched the operation. 

The animals were presented to Colonel Roosevelt by an African ranchman, 
who captured them when they were young. The five lions and the leopard 
were shipped direct to Washington. The other animals, including two harte- 
beasts, two elands, one gazelle, one wart-hog, and one waterbuck, were taken 
to the Philadelphia zoological gardens, where they remained in quarantine for 
fifteen days, after which they were sent to the National Capital. 

Previously several casks and cases had been shipped, containing skulls, 
bones, and skins of two impallas. We will now introduce some of the most 
interesting members of the monkey family to our readers. 

The proverb "mischievous as a monkey" reveals the estimation in which 
monkeys commonly are held. The more or less human-like form, the fre- 
quent tendency to assume an upright position, coupled with their hand-like 
feet are amply sufficient to distinguish the group to which these animals 
belong from all others. 

The peculiar traits of the monkey, which have made this class of animals 
the most interesting to the children and a source of amusement to their 
elders, are an interesting study. 

A neighbor of mine had a monkey of which he was very fond and the 
little pet used to love to sit on his master's shoulder. It showed, neverthe- 
less, a great dislike to strangers, and was not on good terms with any other 
member of my friend's household. My neighbor had started from home 
one morning without taking the monkey with him, and the little creature 
having missed its friend, and concluded, as it seemed, that he would be 
sure to come to me, both being in the habit of paying me a daily visit 
together, came straight to my dwelling, taking a short cut over gardens, 
trees, and thickets, instead of going the roundabout way of the street. It 
had never done this before, and we knew the route it had taken only from 
a neighbor having watched its movements. On arriving at my house, and 
not finding its master, it climbed to the top of my table, and sat with an air 
of quiet resignation waiting for him. He failed to come, and after a wait 



230 



THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 



of several hours it returned home. Disappointed there it again came to me, 
and this time its master was there. The little creature was overjoyed and 
clung to him as a child would to its mother. 

When at Malwa in Northern India, which is one of the lakes where I 
spent a day, I was warned that, in passing under a landslip which slopes 
down to the lake, I should be liable to have stones thrown at me by monkeys. 
Regarding this as being possibly a traveler's tale, I made a particular point 




MONKEYS STONING MR. SEYMOUR. 



of going tO' the spot in order to see what could have given rise to it. As I 
approached the base of the landslip on the north side of the lake, I saw a 
number of brown monkeys rush to the sides and across the top of the slip, 
and presently pieces of loosened stone and shale came tumbling down near 
where I stood. I fully satisfied myself that this was not merely accidental; 
for I distinctly saw one monkey industriously, with both forepaws, and 
with obvious malice, pushing the loose shingle off a shoulder of rock. I 






THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 



231 




LANGUR MONKEYS OF THE HIMALAYA MOUNTAINS. 

then tried the effect of throwing stones at them, and this made them quite 
angry, and the number of fragments which they then set rolling was speedily 
doubled. This, though it does not actually amount to throwing or pro- 
jecting an object by monkeys as a means of offense, comes very near to the 



232 THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 

same thing, and makes me think that there may be truth in the stories of 
their throwing fruit at people from trees. 

In confinement the monkey is generally docile, good-tempered and 
amenable to instruction. A specimen in a zoological garden was said to be 
a most importunate beggar; but instead of snatching the contributions of 
his visitors with violence or anger, like the generality of monkeys, he solicited 
them by tumbling, dancing, and a hundred other amusing tricks. He was 
very fond of being caressed, and would examine the hands of his friends 
with great gentleness and gravity, trying to pick out the little hairs, and all 
the while expressing his satisfaction by smacking his lips, and uttering a 
low surprised grunt. 

Monkeys as a rule travel in bands in the wild state. The herds vary in 
number; some cannot include much less than from two hundred and fifty 
to three hundred monkeys of all ages. The old males usually take the lead 
when the troop is moving;, some of them also bringing up the rear; others 
placing themselves on high rocks or bushes, and keeping a sharp lookout 
after enemies. A troop collected on a rocky crag presents a most singular 
appearance. Whenever they assemble in the evening' every jutting rock, 
every little stone more prominent than the rest is occupied by a patriarch 
of the herd, who sits with gravity and watchfulness befitting his grizzled 
hair, waiting patiently for the march to begin anew. The females are mainly 
occupied in taking care of the young; the smaller monkeys amusing them- 
selves by gamboling about. Occasionally, if a young monkey becomes too 
noisy, or interferes with the repose of his seniors, he "catches it" in most 
unmistakable style, and is dismissed with many cuffs, a wiser if not a better 
monkey. 

Sometimes battles take place among the monkeys in the wild state, when 
it is surprising to witness the rapidity with which they will follow an offender 
down a stupendous precipice, or from the top of a lofty tree; tumbling- 
one after another they descend hundreds of feet in a moment or two. The 
object of the popular wrath sometimes escapes, but in this event he is never 
permitted to return, becoming an exile. He often attaches himself to 
another group or band, where after a short probation he is received on 
good behavior. Should, however, the hapless member of the tribe be caught 
he is punished with death. The various troops rarely indulge in pitched 
battles with other bands, preferring to turn back in their course when their 
paths cross. 

The member of the simian tribe with his natty red coat and twinkling 



THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 



233 




MACAQUE, OR BROWN MONKEY. 

eye who is one-half the stock in trade of the organ grinder has been trained 
to do his part and does it faithfully. He is loyal to his master. ^ An instance 
of this was shown when a highly prized monkey one day playfully climbed 
to the roof of his master's house. All efforts to induce him to come down 
were unavailing. Finally his master pointed a gun at him, but quite unsuc- 



234 



THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 



cessfully. Jack slipped over to the rear of the building. Another gun was 
procured and one was placed on each side of the house, when the monkey, 
seeing the fix he was in, sprang on the chimney, and hid in one of the flues, 
holding on by his forepaws. A fire soon ^brought him out and he meekly 
surrendered, coming to his master in an abashed and crestfallen manner. 

With the exception of a few small species, such as the marmosets and the 
lemurs, the simians are not very pleasing animals in aspect or habits; while 
the larger apes and baboons are positively disgusting. The air of grotesque 




A ROUGH RIDER IN AFRICA. 



humanity that ' characterizes them is horribly suggestive of human idiocy. 
It is true that the naturalist learns to see wonder or beauty in all things of 
nature, and therefore looks with lively interest on the ape. But still, this 
creature is less pleasing in his sight than many others which may be not so 
highly developed; and in truth there are few who, if the choice lay between 
the two fates, would not prefer to suffer from the fangs and claws of the 
lion than from the teeth and hands of the ape. 



THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 



235 



Although these animals are capable of assuming a partially erect position, 
yet their habitual attitude is on all-fours. Even the most accomplished ape 
is but a bad walker when he discards the use of his two upper limbs, and 
trusts for support and progression to the hinder legs only. There are many 
dogs which can walk, after the manner of two-legged animals, with a firmer 
step and a more assured demeanor than the apes, although they do not so 
closely resemble the human figure. 

On account of the structure of the limbs, the term "hand" is given to 
their extremities; but scarcely with perfect fitness. It must be borne in 




A WHITE-NOSED MONKEY OF LIBERIA. 



mind that the thumb is not always found on the fore extremities of these 
animals. In several kinds of monkeys the fore paws are destitute of effective 
thumbs, and the hand-like grasp is limited to the hinder feet. The so-called 
hands of the monkey tribes will not bear comparison with those of man. 
Although the thumb possesses great freedom of motion, and in many species 
can be opposed to the fingers in a manner resembling the hand of man, yet 
there is no intellectual power in the monkey hand; none of that character- 
istic contour which speaks of the glorious human soul so strongly that an 



236 



THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 



artist can sketch a single hand, and in that one member exhibit the' indi- 
viduality of its owner. 

That monkeys, among the other characteristics which show a closer con- 
necting link with the human species than is at all agreeable, should possess 
that love of seeing how near they can get to danger without being hurt, 
which finds a place in almost every man's breast, is especially odd, but none 
the less true. 

)! 411 ^ i i _, ■// Uh^v i'i 




HAVING FUN WITH A CROCODILE. 



The rivers all through the kingdom of Siam abound with crocodiles in an 
extraordinary manner. ' These are tantalized daily by the monkeys, who 
annoy them in various ways. One day I was a witness to the monkey's love 
for frolic and the penalty sometimes paid. A large number of the agile little 
animals had gathered in a tree under which a crocodile was sunning in some 
shallow water. One after another the monkeys would drop to the lower 
branches, but careful not to approach too near the open jaws. Approaching 



THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 



237 



nearer and nearer the crocodile, and yelling at every effort the animal made 
to catch a stray leg or arm between his teeth. 

The odd sport went on for a full hour, the monkeys growing more and 
more excited, and the crocodile never once losing his patience, probably well 
aware, from experience, that in the end he should be repaid for having so 
kindly lent himself to their amusement. 




AN OLD HANUMAN APE. 



At last an unlucky monkey slid down the trunk of the tree, passing 
unceremoniously over the heads and backs of his companions, evidently with 
the intention of taking the place of the one who occupied the post of danger 
near the water. 



238 



THE STORY OP THE MONKEY. 



The whole crowd yelled and chattered louder than ever, and the Croco- 
dile's mouth opened wider, but he gave no other evidence of eagerness. 

The monkey had nearly reached the bottom of the line when he made a 
misstep, lost his hold, and fell into the river. 

There was one cry of agony, that was fairly human in its intensity, and 
the unhappy wight was dragged under the water. The crocodile and his vic- 
tim had disappeared. 

The chain was immediately broken, the monkeys flew up the tree in ter- 







A GOOD TEMPERANCE LESSON. 



rible haste, their merriment changed to doleful cries, and there they sat 
wringing their hands, and bewailing the fate of their companion. 

In Darfour and Sennaar the natives make a fermented beer of which the 
monkeys are very fond. Aware of this, the natives go to the parts of the 
forests frequented by the monkeys, and set on the ground calabashes full of 
the enticing liquor. As soon as a monkey sees and tastes it, he utters loud 
cries of joy, attracting his comrades. Then an orgie begins, and in a short 
time the beasts show all degrees of intoxication. Then the negroes appear. 



THE STORY OP THE MONKEY. 



239 



The few monkeys who come too late to get fuddled escape. The drinkers 
are too far gone to distrust their captors, but apparently take them for larger 
species of their own genus. The negroes lay hold of one or two, and these 
immediately begin to weep and cover them with maudlin kisses. When a 
negro takes one by the hand to lead him off, the nearest monkey will cling 
to the one who thus finds a support and endeavor to go off also. Another 
will grasp at him, and thus in turn till the negro leads a staggering line of 
ten or a dozen tipsy monkeys. 




/*$ 



A DOG-FACED BABOON. 



THE UGLY BABOON. 

With the true baboons we come to the most hideous and repulsive-look- 
ing members of the monkey tribe, their repulsive appearance being only 
equalled by the fierce and untamable disposition of several of the group. 
All the baboons are confined to Africa and the countries lying on the north 
of the Red Sea, so that they are totally absent from the Oriental region. 



240 THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 

They are found over the whole of Africa; but, as is so generally the case, 
are represented by a greater variety on the west coast than elsewhere, and 
it is also in that region that the most hideous representatives of the group 
are to be found. 

While agreeing with the gelada baboon in the great length of their 
snouts, the true baboons are readily distinguished by the nostrils being 
placed at the very extremity of their snout; indeed, in the Arabian baboon 
they actually project slightly beyond the upper lip, as is the case in most 
dos^s. This canine form of countenance led the ancient Greeks and Romans 
to apply the name dog-headed to these animals. This great prolongation 
of the snout shows that the baboons are the lowest of the Old World 
monkeys, and they bear the most marked signs of relationship with the 
inferior orders of mammals. 

In addition to their long snouts, baboons are likewise distinguished by 
the large proportionate size of their skulls, this being most markedly the 
case with some of the West African forms. Moreover, the bones forming 
the upper jaws are greatly inflated, so as to give a swollen look to> this part 
of the face in some of the species. They may also carry prominent oblique 
ridges, which form the support for the peculiar fleshy tumor-like structures 
occurring in certain West African examples. 

In all the baboons the callous places on the buttocks are unusually large, 
and may be very brightly colored. The tail is never very long, and often 
very short. The arms and legs, or, as they may be better termed, fore- and 
hind-legs, are nearly equal in length, and are thus far better adapted for pro- 
gress on the ground than for climbing. Indeed none of the baboons 
appear to be adepts at climbing, and many of them pass almost their 
whole time on the ground. Several species of this group show an especial 
predilection for rocky ground, and are accustomed to go in large troops — 
this association being probably necessary for defence against the attacks 
of leopards and other flesh eating animals. 

Their defence does not, however, rest solely on the strength of numbers; 
for the male baboons, which are considerably superior in size and strength 
to their consorts, are armed with tusks of the most formidable dimensions. 
Indeed, a bite from one of these animals must be almost, if not quite, as 
severe and dangerous as a leopard's; and there are instances on record where 
leopards have been successfully attacked and mastered by a few old male 
baboons. 

The mandrill, which is the most conspicuous of the baboon tribe, is a 



THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 



241 



native of Guinea and Western Africa, and is chiefly remarkable, for the vivid 
colors with which it is adorned. Its cheeks are of a brilliant blue, its muzzle 
of a bright scarlet, and a stripe of crimson runs along the center of its nose. 
These colors are agreeably contrasted by the purple hues of the hinder 
quarters. It lives principally in forests filled with brushwood, from which 




\ WHITE-HANDED GIBBON. 



it makes incursions into the nearest villages, plundering them with impu- 
nity. On this account it is much dreaded by the natives, who feel them- 
selves incapable of resisting its attacks. It is excessively ferocious, and 
easily excited to anger; and when enraged, so boundless is its rage, that I 
have seen several of these animals expire from the violence of their fury. 



242 THE STORY OF THE MONKEY, 

The greenish-brown color of the hair of this and other monkeys is caused 
by alternate bands of yellow and black, which exist on each hair. The bril- 
liant colors referred to above belong to the skin, and fade away entirely 
after death. 

The chacma, or bear baboon is remarkable chiefly for its ability in dis- 
covering water. When the water begins to run short, and the known 
fountains have failed, the chacma is deprived of water for a whole day, until 
it is furious with thirst. A long rope is then tied to the baboon's collar, and 
it is suffered to run about where it chooses. 

First it runs forward a little, then stops; gets on its hind feet, and sniffs 
up the air especially taking notice of the wind and its direction. It will 
then, perhaps, change its course; and after running for some distance, take 
another observation. Presently it will spy out a blade of grass, or smaller 
object, pluck it up, turn it on all sides, smell it, and then go forward again. 
Thus the animal proceeds until it leads the party to water — guided by some 
mysterious instinct. 

This species is an inhabitant of the countries bordering on the Red Sea 
littoral and the Upper Nile valley, but to reach its habitat we have to travel 
to the southern extremity of the African continent. 

Like all the 'remaining representatives of the long-tailed baboons, the 
chacma differs from the Arabian baboon by the absence of the mane on the 
neck and shoulders of the males. We have, indeed, in this respect a gradual 
descending series from the gelada baboon, in which both sexes are maned, 
through the Arabian baboon, in which only the males are so ornamented, 
to the chacma, in which both males and females are maneless. In size the 
chacma is one of the largest of the group, and it has been compared in this 
respect, as well as in its bodily strength, with an English mastiff. 

The doguera baboon is a closely allied species or variety, found in 
Abyssinia. It is of a more olive color than the sacred baboon. Dr. Ander- 
son describes a male preserved in the museum at Calcutta as being" of a 
uniform yellowish-olive color on the whiskers and all over the body, above 
and below, except on the hands and feet, which are nearly black. The 
coarse hair on the fore-part of the body is about six inches in length, and 
is ashy-grey in color for the first two inches, while the remainder is banded 
with nine rings of orange and black. 

It was long thought that the yellow baboon, which takes its name from 
the pale brownish-yellow hue of the fur, came from Nubia and the Sudan; 
it is now known to occur on the west coast; but there is a baboon found in 




THE MALBROOK, OR ORGAN GRINDER'S MONKEY. 



243 



244 THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 

the neighborhood of Kilima-Njaro, on the east coast, which is identified with 
this species. These baboons generally frequent the outlying parts of the 
plantations of the natives, subsisting largely on the maize and other prod- 
ucts stolen therefrom. In certain localities they are extremely numerous, 
going about in troops composed of about fourteen individuals of both sexes 
and of all ages. They have but little fear of man, and instead of running 
away will turn round and face an intruder, with threatening gestures, at a 
distance of only a few yards. The natives are in the habit of driving them 
away from the crops, when the baboons retreat in a leisurely manner, with 
their cheek-pouches crammed full, and often dragging off some of the 
plunder in their hands. 

There are few species of mammals that have given rise to more confusion 
in natural history literature than the Guinea baboon, of which examples 
have been described under at least two distinct names, and regarded as dif- 
ferent species, though it is a well-ascertained fact that the common baboon 
belongs to one and the same species as the Guinea baboon. 

The Guinea baboon is characterized by the uniformly reddish-brown color 
of its fur, which is washed with a yellowish tinge, more especially upon the 
head, shoulders, back, and limbs; the cheeks and throat being paler, and the 
whiskers fawn-colored. As in the chacma, the upper eyelids are white. The 
nose projects rather beyond the upper lip, but is somewhat less elongated 
than in the chacma, and has small swellings corresponding with those so 
enormously developed in the next species. 

As its name indicates, it is an inhabitant of Guinea; and although, judg- 
ing from the number of specimens that are imported into Europe, it must 
be common, there is no record of its habits and mode of life in a state of 
nature. Of those in a state of confinement there are, however, numerous 
accounts, the species being frequently carried about by itinerant showmen. 

THE INTELLIGENT CHIMPANZEE. 

The chimpanzee is a native of Western Africa, and is common on the 
banks of the Gambia and in Congo. It is also found on the peninsula of 
Malacca and several islands of the Indian ocean. Large bands of these 
formidable apes congregate together and unite in repelling an invader, 
which they do with such fury and courage that even the dreaded elephant 
and lion are driven from their haunts by their united efforts. They live 
principally on the ground, and, as the name imports, spend much of their 



THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 



245 



time in caves and under rocks. Their height is from four to five feet, but 
they are said not to reach this growth until nine or ten years of age. 

That the chimpanzee was known in Europe as far back as 1598 is proved 
by an account brought back from the Congo by a Portuguese sailor, named 
Eduardo Lopez. In 161 3 there appeared the history of the wanderings of 
an English sailor, named Andrew Battel, in the lower part of Guinea, in 
1590, who appears to have heard of or seen, not only the chimpanzee, 




THE CHIMPANZEE AND ITS HABITS. 



which he designates the Enjocko, but likewise the gorilla, which he calls 
the pongo. Hence the name Jocko so generally given to individuals of the 
monkey tribe. 

In captivity, chimpanzees, when in health, are gentle, intelligent, and 
affectionate, readily learning to feed themselves with a spoon, or to drink 
out of a. glass or cup. Unfortunately, however, their span of life in this 



246 THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 

country is but brief. The longest period that a chimpanzee has hitherto 
lived in a zoological garden at London is eight years; "Sally," who died in 
1 89 1, having been kept there for that time. The description by Dr. J. G. 
Romanes of the mental power of "Sally" is full of interest. This account 
was written after the creature had been nearly six years in the London 
Zoological Gardens. The intelligence of "Sally" is compared by Dr. 
Romanes to that of a child a few months before emerging from the period 
of infancy, and is thus far higher than that of any other mammal (exclusive 
of man). In spite, however, of this relatively high degree of intelligence, 
the creature's power of making vocal replies to her keepers, or those with 
whom she was brought into contact, were of the most limited kind. Such 
replies were, indeed, restricted to three peculiar grunting noises. One of 
these indicated assent or affirmation; another, of very similar intonation, 
denoted refusal or distrust; while the third, and totally different intonation, 
was used to express thanks or recognition of favors. In disposition "Sally" 
was, like many of her sex, apt to be capricious and uncertain; although, 
on the whole, she was good-humored and fond of her keepers, with whom 
she was never tired of a kind of bantering play. 

It has always been a matter of surprise that no large man-like ape now 
inhabits the dense tropical forests of India or Burma, which would appear 
to be just as suitable for these creatures as are those of Borneo or Equatorial 
Africa. The discovery in India of a jaw of a large ape apparently belonging 
to the same genus as the chimpanzee shows us, however, that large man-like 
apes must have once roamed over the plains of India. Why chimpanzees, 
together with hippopotami and giraffes, which are likewise found fossil in 
India but are now confined to< Africa, should have totally disappeared from 
the former country, is, however, one of those puzzling problems connected 
with the distribution of animals which we have but little hope of answering 
satisfactorily. 

THE ORANG-OUTAN. 

The Orang-outan inhabits Borneo and Sumatra. In Borneo there are 
two species of orang, called by the natives the Miaskassar and the Miaspap- 
pan. Some naturalists suppose that the Sumatran orang is also a distinct 
species. 

This is the largest of all the apes, as it is said that orangs have been 
obtained from Borneo considerably above five feet in height. The strength 
of this animal is tremendous: a female snapped a strong spear asunder after 



THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 



247 



having received many severe wounds. Its arms are of extraordinary length, 
the hands reaching the ground when it stands erect. This length of arm is 
admirably adapted for climbing trees, on which it principally resides. 

When young the orang-outan is very docile, and has been taught to 
make its own bed, and to handle a cup and saucer, or a spoon, with tolerable 
propriety. For the former occupation it proved itself particularly apt, as 
it not only laid its own bed-clothes smooth and comfortable, but exhibited 
much ingenuity in stealing blankets from other beds, which it added to its 
own. A young orang evinced extreme horror at the sight of a small tor- 




YOUNG OURANG-OUTANS AT PLAY. 



toise, and, when the reptile was introduced into its den, stood aghast in a 
most ludicrously terrified attitude, with its eyes intently fixed on the fright- 
ful object. 

The orangs, like gorillas, go in small family parties, consisting of the 
parents accompanied frequently by from two to four young ones. Although 
they will devour leaves, buds, and young shoots, — more especially those of 
the bamboo, — the chief food of the orang consists of fruits of various kinds, 
the prime favorite being the luscious but ill-smelling durian or jack-fruit. 



248 THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 

Of this fruit they waste a vast quantity, throwing the rejected rinds on'the 
ground below. 

THE ACROBATIC MONKEY. 

The Agile Gibbon is a native of Sumatra. This species, too, is included 
in the man-like apes. It derives its name of Agile, from the wonderful 
activity it displays in launching itself through the air from branch to 
branch. One of these creatures, that was exhibited some time since, sprang 
with the greatest ease through distances of twelve and eighteen feet; and 
when apples or nuts were thrown to her while in the air, she would catch 
them without discontinuing her course. She kept up a succession of springs, 
hardly touching the branches in her progress, continually uttering a musical 
but almost deafening cry. She was very tame and gentle, and would permit 
herself to be touched or caressed. The height of the gibbon is about three 
feet, and the reach of the extended arms about six feet. The young gibbon 
is of a paler color than its parent. 

THE LONG-NOSE MONKEY. 

The kahau, or proboscis monkey, is a native of Borneo. It derives its 
name from the cry it utters, which is a repetition of the word "kahau." It 
is remarkable for the extraordinary size and shape of its nose, and the 
natives relate that while leaping it holds that organ with its paws, apparently 
to guard it against the branches. It is not an animal of very captivating 
appearance; but when it has been macerated in spirits of wine for a few 
months, its ugliness is quite supernatural. Naturalists formerly supposed 
that there were two species of this animal — the nose of one being aquiline 
and that of the other being slightly turned up. It was discovered, however, 
that the latter animal was only the young kahau, whose little nose had not 
reached its full beauty. The length of the animal from the head to the tip 
of the tail is about four feet four inches; and its general color is a sandy 
red, relieved by yellow cheeks and a yellow stripe over the shoulders. 

THE SACRED MONKEYS OF INDIA, 

The monkey called the Entellus is held sacred in some parts of India, 
particularly in Lower Bengal. The origin of the extreme veneration, which 
multitudes cherish for this animal, is involved in the obscurity of their early 



THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 



349 




SACRED APES OF INDIA. 



history, and may be traced back to the most remote periods. Some years 
ago, a rajah spent 100,000 rupees in marrying two monkeys, with all the 
parade of a Hindoo wedding. The festivities on such an occasion always 
take place at night. 

On the so-called marriage of the monkeys, there were seen in the pro- 



250 



THE STORY OF THE MONKEY. 



cession, elephants, camels, horses, richly caparisoned, palanquins, flambeaux, 
and lamps. The male monkey was fastened in a gaily-decked palanquin, 
having a crown on his head, with men standing by his side to fan him, as 
they would a human being. Then followed singing and dancing girls in 
carriages, and for twelve days the festivities were carried on at the monkey 
palace. 

THE MARMOSET. 




MARMOSET TEARING PICTURES OF BUGS OUT OF A BOOK AND EATING THEM. 



The marmoset is a most interesting little creature. It is exceedingly 
sensitive to cold, and when out of its own country is usually occupied in 
nestling among the materials for its bed, which it heaps up in one corner 
and out of which it seldom entirely emerges. It will eat almost any article 
of food, but is especially fond of insects, which it dispatches in a very adroit 
manner. It will also eat fruits, especially those of its native country. Its 
fondness for insects has been carried so far that it has been known to pinch 
out the figures of beetles in books and swallow them. 




STORY OF THE GORILLA. 



The gorilla, an enormous ape from Western Africa, is the largest mem- 
ber of the monkey family, but others have a much greater resemblance to 
man and have many human characteristics wanting in the gorilla. Of the 
man-like apes, the chimpanzee is the largest and most commonly known. 
Next comes the orang-outan, which frequently attains a height of over five 
feet. The gibbon is a small, active simian, and has the peculiarity of great 
cleanliness; the mother washing her offspring's face several times daily in 
spite of the struggles and screams of the young. Others are the marmoset, 
lemurs, the spider-monkeys. 

A great deal of nonsense has been written about the impossibility of man 
being descended from the chimpanzee, a gorilla, or an orang. No one, how- 
ever, who knows what he is talking about, can ever suppose for a single 
moment that such was the case. What zoologists do contend for is that, 
supposing some kind of evolution to be true explanation of the origin of 
animals, — and all the available evidence indicates that it is so, — man is so 
intimately connected, so far as his bodily structure is concerned, with the 
higher apes that, in this respect at least, he cannot but be considered to have 
had a similar origin. And on this' view both man and the man-like apes are 
regarded as diverging branches descended from a common ancestor, — "the 

251 



252 THE STORY OF THE GORILLA. 

missing link," — long since extinct, and as much unlike any living ape, as 
such apes are unlike man himself. 

That the higher apes are closely related in their bodily structure to> man 
is obvious to all, and it is a fact that the differences between some of these 
apes and man are of far less importance than those by which the lower 
monkeys are separated from the higher apes. It has, indeed, been attempted 
to show that apes and monkeys are sharply distinguished from man by the 
circumstance that while man is two-handed, apes and monkeys are four- 
handed. The difference between the foot of one of the larger apes and that 
of man is, however, merely one of degree, and is much less than that between 
the apes and the lowest representatives of the order. 

Most of the monkey tribe are inhabitants of forest regions. Aided by 
their hand-like feet, all of them are expert climbers, and many, like the 
oriental gibbons and the South American spider-monkeys, but rarely leave 
the trees, leaping from bough to bough, and thus from tree to tree, far above 
the heads of the travelers, below, to whom their presence is made known 
only by their continual howling or chattering. The climbing powers of the 
South American monkeys are largely aided by their prehensile tails, which 
serve the purpose of a fifth limb. Owing to the warmth of the regions in 
which most of them dwell, monkeys never hibernate. Contrary, howeveV, 
to what is often supposed to be the case„ several of the smaller species are 
expert swimmers, and will fearlessly cross comparatively large rivers. 

When the human skeleton is contrasted with that of the ape the size of 
the ape's forearm is the most striking point of difference. Next comes the 
shape of the skull and the ring of bone surrounding the sockets of the eyes. 
The number of teeth differs in the various species. In the very young the 
resemblance to man is much greater than in the adult ape. 

Dr. Robert Hartmann, of Berlin, who has devoted much attention to 
the man-like apes, observes that "in the gorilla, the chimpanzee, and the 
orang-outan, the outer form is subject to modifications, according to the 
age and sex. The difference between the sexes is most strongly marked in 
the gorilla, and these differences are least apparent in the gibbons. When 
a young male gorilla is compared with an aged animal of the same species we 
are almost tempted to believe that we have to do with two> entirely different 
creatures. While the young male still shows a resemblance to the human 
structure, and develops in its bodily habits the same qualities which gen- 
erally characterize the short-tailed apes of the Old World, with the exception 
of the baboon, the aged male is otherwise formed. In the latter case the 



THE STORY OF THE GORILLA. 



253 



points of resemblance to the human type are far fewer; the aged animal has 
become a gigantic ape, retaining indeed, in the structure of his hands and 
feet, the characteristics of his kind, while ,the protruding head is something 
between the muzzle of the baboon, the bear, and the boar. Simultaneously 
with these remarkable alterations of the outer structure there occurs a 
change of the skeleton. The skull of an aged male gorilla becomes more 
projecting at the muzzle, and the dog teeth have almost attained the length 




GORILLA AND YOUNG. 



of those of lions and tigers. On the upper part of the skull, which is rounded 
in youth, great bony crests are developed on the crown of the head and on 
the forehead. The arches above the eye-sockets are covered with wrinkled 
skin, and the already savage and indeed revolting appearance of the gorilla 
is thereby increased." 

Natural history is indebted to Paul Du Chaillu, the African traveler 
and explorer, for its first definite knowledge of the gorilla. 



254 THE STORY OF THE GORILLA. 

A full-grown male, if standing in a perfectly upright position, will gen- 
erally measure rather more than six feet in height; and since his body is 
much more bulky, and his limbs are longer than those of a man, he is con- 
siderably the largest representative of his kind. As in the chimpanzee, there 
are distinct eyebrows on the forehead and lashes to the lids of the eyes. The 
nose has a relatively long bridge, and its extremity is high, conical, and 
widely expanded. The upper lip is remarkable for its shortness; and the 
whole of the dark skin in the region of the nose, cheeks, and mouth is 
marked by a number of wrinkled folds. The massive jaws are extremely 
projecting, and with their huge tusks, or dog teeth, complete the repulsive 
aspect imparted to the expression by the overhanging eyebrows. The ears 
are comparatively small and appear to be fastened above and behind to the 
sides of the face. The head is joined to the trunk by a very short and thick 
neck, which gives the appearance of its being set into the shoulders; and 
the term "bull-necked" is therefore strictly applicable to the creature. This 
great thickness and power of the neck is largely due to the backward pro- 
jection of the skull, and the tall spines surmounting the vertebra of the neck. 
The muscles of the shoulders and chest are equally powerful, as is essential 
for the movements of the mighty arms. 

Although when driven to close quarters the gorilla is doubtless one of 
the most terrible of foes, yet it appears certain that very exaggerated 
accounts have been given of the natural ferocity. Herr von Koppenfels 
informs us that so "long as the gorilla is unmolested he does not attack 
men; and, indeed, rather avoids the encounter." And when these creatures 
catch sight of men, they generally rush off precipitately in the opposite 
direction through the underwood, giving vent at the same time to peculiar 
guttural cries. It appears that many gorillas are killed by the natives with 
the aid of a weighted spear suspended by a cunningly devised system of 
cords in the creature's path. Others are, however, undoubtedly shot by the 
negroes, although it would seem that, at least in many instances, such 
animals have been accidentally met by the hunters as they travelled through 
the forest rather than deliberately sought out and tracked. 





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THE STORY OF THE LEMUR. 



, So many people mistake lemurs for monkeys, that I have decided to 
speak at some length of the former animals. The resemblance between 
lemurs and monkeys is so strong that it is difficult to explain in a popular 
work the exact difference without treating of the anatomy, the physical 
construction of both. This I do not propose to do, but will try to make it 
clear in other ways. 

The first point of difference is to be noticed in the foxy, but expression- 
less faces of the lemurs, indicating that they are of a much lower order of 
intelligence than apes and monkeys. 

Many lemurs are purely night animals, and it was probably from this cir- 
cumstance, coupled with their silent habits and stealthy movements, that 
Linnaeus was induced to give them the name which they are now uni- 
versally known. The name lemur is taken from the Latin term lemures, 
which, together with that of larvae, was applied by the ancient Romans to 
such spirits of the dead as were supposed to be of malignant natures. 

Altogether, there are about fifty species of lemur-like animals. They 
are all restricted not only to the Old World, but also to the southern re- 
gions of the great land masses of that hemisphere, none of them being 

255 



256 THE STORY OF THE LEMUR. 

found to the northward of the tropic of Cancer, while the tropic of Capricorn 
very nearly limits their southward range. Within this area a few species are 
found respectively throughout the warmer regions of Africa, and in 
Southern India and Ceylon, while their eastern limits are marked by the 
island of Celebes and the Philippines. In all these regions the number of 
species is comparatively few, and they form but an unimportant element in 
the general animal family of the country. The case is, however, very dif- 
ferent in the great island of Madagascar, which is the headquarters of the 
whole group. Here we find them constituting no less than one-half the 
animals of the island, most of the others being small forms, unknown either 
on the continent of Africa or in Asia. The true lemurs occur only in Mada- 
gascar, and it is very remarkable that all the species of the group found in 
that island scarcely show any closer relationship to those of the African 
mainland than they exhibit to those of Asia. So abundant, indeed, are 
lemurs in Madagascar that at least one individual is almost sure to be found 
in every little copse throughout the island. 

It will be evident that such a numerous population of helpless animals 
like lemurs could not exist in a land overrun with large flesh-eating animals; 
and in the whole of Madagascar we find only a few civets and an allied 
creature known as the fossa. Now to account for these peculiar features — 
the absence of all large flesh-eaters, except civets, and the abundance of 
lemurs — we have to call in the aid of the geologist. He will tell us that 
lemur-like animals, accompanied by civet-like animals, existed in England, 
France, and other parts of Europe during the early part of the Tertiary 
period. And we are accordingly led to conclude that the lemurs and civets 
of Madagascar obtained an entrance into that island, doubtless by way 
of Africa, at a time when that continent was still free from the presence of 
the large flesh-eating animals and the host of hoofed creatures, which now 
form such a dominant feature in its animal population. After the lemurs 
and civets had obtained an entrance into Madagascar that country became 
separated from the adjacent mainland, and it has remained as an island ever 
since. There, secure from molestation, the lemurs have attained a develop- 
ment unequalled at any time in any part of the globe, and afford us an 
admirable instance of the importance a group of animajs may attain when 
living under favorable conditions. 

We have already said that many lemurs are essentially nocturnal crea- 
tures. To this we may add that they are all of essentially tree frequenting in 
their habits. Indeed, except when compelled to descend to the ground to 



THE STORY OF THE LEMUR. 



257 



obtain water, or for the purpose of crossing from one plantation or coppice 
to another, they but rarely leave the trees. Their diet is extremely mixed, 
scarcely anything coming amiss to them, as will be inferred when we men- 
tion that leaves, fruits, insects, reptiles, birds' eggs, and birds themselves are 
eagerly consumed by most of these animals. 

By the natives of Madagascar the lemurs are looked upon with suspicious 
awe, and are consequently but seldom molested. This is doubtless due to 




THE RUFFED LEMUR. 



their nocturnal habits and ghost-like movements; while the large eyes essen- 
tial to these and all other nocturnal creatures have perhaps contributed to 
this feeling. In Ceylon and India the large glaring eyes of one of the 
prettiest of the lemurs used to lead to the unfortunate creatures being put to 
a cruel death. None of the lemurs attain any very large size, and all of 
them, when unmolested, are- perfectly harmless and inoffensive animals, ex- 
cept to the birds, reptiles, and insects upon which they prey. 



258 THE STORY OF THE LEMUR. 

The largest of the true lemurs is known as the ruffed lemur. It inhabits 
the Northeast Coast of Madagascar, and as its name indicates, is remark- 
able for the variety of color of its fur. Frequently this is a mixture of black 
and white, disposed in patches on different parts of the body, but occasion- 
ally white individuals are met with; others are a reddish brown. 

The red-fronted lemur is met with in all parts of the island; the white- 
fronted is found on the Northeast Coast and the black-fronted on the North- 
west Coast. Besides these there are the Mungoose lemur of the West- 
ern Coast, the black lemur of the Northwest Coast, the gentle lemur of the 
jungles, the weasel lemur of Northwest Madagascar and the mouse lemur 
of which there are many varieties. 

One of the most interesting of all is the little creature known as the 
dwarf mouse lemur, but often referred to as the Madagascar rat. The head 
and body of this diminutive creature do not exceed 4 inches in- length, 
while the tail measures 6 inches. The prevailing color is a pale grey; the 
chin and under-parts being pale yellow, and the outer surface of the ears 
light brown, while a white streak runs up the nose and between the eyes. 
The eyes themselves are surrounded by black rims, giving to the face the ap- 
pearance of wearing a pair of spectacles. 

The dwarf mouse lemur builds beautifully constructed nests of twigs, 
lined with hair, in the tops of the lofty trees where it delights to dwell. 
These nests somewhat resemble those of a rook both in form and size, and 
are used not only as daily resting-places but as cradles for the young. 
The species is remarkable for the extreme beauty of its brilliant eyes. 

The dwarf lemurs inhabit a belt of forest-land stretching from the 
eastern forest into the heart of Betsileo, a few miles north of Fianarantsoa, 
where they are tolerably abundant. They live on the tops of the highest 
trees, choosing invariably the smallest branches, where they collect a quan- 
tity of dried leaves, and make what looks from below like a bird's nest. So 
close is the resemblance, that it requires good eyes to distinguish the one 
from the other. Their food consists of fruit and insects, and most probably 
honey. I have frequently seen them catching the flies that have entered their 
cage for the honey; and I have supplied them with moths and butterflies, 
which they have devoured with avidity. They are extremely shy and 
wild. Although I have had between thirty and forty caged at different 
times, I have never succeeded in taming one. They are also very quarrel- 
some, and fight very fiercely, uttering a most piercing, penetrating sound, 
somewhat resembling a very shrill whistle. 



THE StORY OF THE LEMUR. 259 

The best known African lemurs are called galagos. With the exception 
of a kind from the West Coast, the great, or thick-tailed galago, of Mozam- 
bique and the Lower Zambesi Valley, is the largest of all the species. This 
animal is about the size of a cat of average dimensions; and, indeed, the 
peculiar manner in which it carries its thick bushy tail high above its back 
is highly suggestive of a pampered Persian cat. This bushy tail is about one- 
fourth longer than the head and body. The ears are unusually long. . 

It is confined to the maritime region, so far as I know never penetrating 
beyond the band of wood generally known as the mangrove forest. By the 
Portuguese it is named "rat of the cocoanut palm," that being its favorite 
haunt by day, nestling among the fronds; but if it be disturbed, performing 
feats of agility, and darting from one palm to another. It will spring with 
great rapidity, adhering to any -object as if it were a lump of wet clay. It 
has one failing, otherwise its capture would be no easy task. Should a 
pot of palm-wine be left on the tree, the creature drinks to excess, comes 
down, and rushes about intoxicated. In captivity they are mild; during the 
day remaining either rolled up in a ball, or perched half asleep, with ears 
stowed away like a beetle's wing under its hard and ornamented case. I 
had half a dozen squirrels with one in the same cage; these were good 
friends, the latter creeping under the galago's soft fur and falling asleep. On 
introducing a few specimens of (elephant) shrew, the galago seized one and 
bit off its tail, which however, it did not eat. The food it took was biscuit, 
rice, orange, banana, guava, and a little cooked meat. Stupid during the 
day, it became active at night, or just after darkness set in. The rapidity 
and length of its leaps, which were absolutely noiseless, must give great facili- 
ties to its capturing live prey. I never knew it give a loud call, but it would 
often make a low, chattering noise. It had been observed at the Luabo 
mouth of the Zambesi, at Quillimane, and at Mozambique. When I had my 
live specimen at Zanzibar, the natives did not seem to recognize it; never- 
theless, it may be abundant on the mainland. 

In the warmer parts of Asia is found the slow lemur or loris. The name 
loris, by which all the slow lemurs are commonly known, is derived from 
the Dutch word Loeris, meaning a clown, and appears to have been applied 
to. these animals by the Dutch colonists of the East Indian Islands. To the 
natives of India the slow loris is known either by the name Sharmindi billi, 
"bashful cat," or Lajjar banar, "bashful monkey." It is an animal about the 
size of a cat; different individuals or races varying considerably in size, so 
that while some specimens do not measure more than 13 inches in total 



260 THE STORY OF THE LEMUR. 

length, others may reach as much as 15 inches, or even more. Its propor- 
tions are thick and clumsy; the head being broad and flat, with a slightly 
projecting and pointed muzzle. The large eyes are perfectly circular, and 
their pupils can be completely closed by the gradual contraction of the iris, 
which open from above and below, so that when the pupil is half concealed 
it takes the form of a transverse slit. The ears are short, rounded, and 
partly buried in the fur; and are, thus, very different from those of the 
galagos. The hind-limbs are only slightly longer than the others. With 
the exception of the muzzle and the hands and feet, the whole of the body 
is covered with a thick coat of very close and somewhat long woolly fur. 

In the more common and larger variety, the color of the fur is ashy-grey 
above, tending to become silvery along the sides of the back, the under-parts 
being lighter, and the rump often having a tinge of red. The stripe on the 
back is chestnut-colored, and stops short at the hinder part of the crown of 
the head. The eyes are, however, surrounded by dark rims; between which 
is the white streak extending upwards from the nose. The ears, together 
with a small surrounding area, are brown. 

The slow loris is found over a large area in the countries lying to the east- 
ward of the Bay of Bengal. It occurs on the northeast frontier of India in 
the provinces of Sylhet and Assam, whence it extends southwards into 
Burma, Tenasserim, and the Malay Peninsula; while it is also found in Siam 
and Cochin China, and the islands of Sumatra, Java and Borneo. 

Its food consists of leaves and young shoots of trees, as well as fruits, 
various kinds of insects, birds, and their eggs. It has been observed to 
stand nearly erect upon its feet, and from this advantageous position pounce 
upon an insect. It is generally silent, although sometimes uttering a low 
crackling sound; but when enraged, and especially if about to bite, it gives a 
kind of fierce growl. This animal is tolerably common in the Tenasserim 
provinces and Arakan; but, being strictly nightly in its habits, is seldom seen. 
It inhabits the densest forests, and never by choice leaves the trees. Its 
movements are slow, but it climbs readily, and grasps with great tenacity. 
If placed on the ground, it can proceed, if frightened, in a wavering kind of 
trot, the limbs placed at right angles. It sleeps rolled up in a ball, its head 
and hands buried between its thighs, and wakes up at the dusk of evening to 
commence its nocturnal rambles. The female bears but one young at a 
time. Many accounts have been published of the habits of the slow loris in 
confinement. While these creatures are apt to be fierce when first captured, 



THE STORY OF THE LEMUR. 261 

they soon become docile. They are very susceptible to cold, and when so 
affected are apt to be fractious and petulant. 

I once had a tame loris which was especially fond of plantains, also 
partial to small birds, which, when put into his cage, he killed speedily; and, 
plucking the feathers off with the skill of a poulterer, soon lodged the carcass 
in his stomach. He ate the bones as well as the flesh; and though birds, and 
mice perhaps, were his favorite food, he ate other meat very readily, espe- 
cially when quite fresh; if boiled, or otherwise cooked, he would not taste it. 
He preferred veal to all other kinds of butcher's meat; eggs, also, he was' 
fond of, and sugar was especially grateful to his palate; he likewise ate gum- 
arabic. As flesh was not always to be had quite fresh, he was for some 
time fed upon bread sopped in water, and sprinkled with sugar; this he ate 
readily, and seemed to relish It. When food was presented to him, if 
hungry, he seized it with both hands, and, letting go with his right, held it 
with his left all the time he was eating. Frequently, when feeding, he 
grasped the bars in the upper part of his cage with his hind paws, and hung 
inverted, appearing very much intent upon the food he held in his left hand. 
He was exceedingly fond of oranges; but, when they were at all hard he 
seemed very much puzzled how to extract the juice. I have, upon such 
an occasion, seen him lie all his length upon his back, in the bottom of the 
cage, and, firmly grasping the piece of orange in both hands, squeeze the 
juice into his mouth. He generally sat upon his hind part (the hair of which 
was much worn by long sitting), close to the bars of his cage, grasping 
them firmly with his hind paws; he then rolled himself up like a ball, with 
his head in his breast, his thighs closely placed over his belly, and his arms 
over his head, generally grasping the bars of the cage with his hands also. 
In this position, and also without moving, he remains the whole day. Upon 
coming into the Channel, the cold weather affected him very much; he 
was seized with cramp, and I at that time placed him in a small box, which 
was filled with very soft down. This he felt so agreeable that, when cold, he 
never left it during the whole day, unless disturbed, and slept in it rolled 
up in the shape of a ball. 

His temper, in cold weather especially, was very quick; but, in general, 
he was rather timid, and never offered any injury unless incautiously 
touched, teased, or provoked; he then made a shrill, plaintive cry, evidently 
expressive of much annoyance, and would bite very sharply. 




THE STORY OF THE MOLE. 



One morning, after a rain, I traced the fresh passageway of a mole for 
one hundred yards. The little animal had made this gallery in one night. 

I was impressed with the enormous amount of work such a small animal 
could perform, and I made some figures in comparison with the labor of a 
man. My figures showed, that in proportion to size, a man would have to 
dig in a single night a tunnel seven miles long and of sufficient size to 
easily admit his body in order to perform equivalent work to this mole. I 
think, therefore, that I am right in the conclusion that the mole is the most 
indefatigable worker of the burrowing animals to be found in the United 
States. 

/Esop in his fables makes frequent reference to the mole, but he was not 
a close student of its habits, for he maligned the little creature by saying it 
had no eyes and that it had been condemned to spend its life under ground. 
The mole does live underground, but does so from choice, and so 
far from being a miserable animal, it seems to enjoy its life quite as much 
as any other creature. It is beautifully fitted for the station which it fills, 
and would be unhappy if removed from its accustomed clamp and darkness 
into warmth and light. 

262 



THE STORY OF THE MOLE. 263 

The eyes of the mole are very small, in order to prevent them from 
being injured by the earth through which the animal makes its way; indeed 
larger eyes would be useless underground. When, however, the mole 
requires to use its eyes, it can bring them forward from the mass of fur 
which conceals and protects them when not in use. The acute ears and 
delicate sense of smell in the meantime supply the place of eyes. Its fur 
is very fine, soft, capable of turning in any direction, and will not retain 
a particle of mold: 

But the most extraordinary part of the mole is the paw or hand with 
which it digs. The two fore-paws are composed of five fingers, armed with 
sharp, strong nails, in order to scrape up the earth; and to prevent the 
accumulated mold from impeding the mole's progress, the hands are turned 
outwardly, so as to throw the earth out of its way. 

Although each mole has its own hunting ground, yet there are mostly 
high roads which connect the different hunting grounds with each other, 
and which are used by many individuals in common, the only precaution 
taken being, that if two moles should happen to meet, the weaker immedi- 
ately retreats into one of the numerous side galleries which open from the 
high road, and permits its aristocratical neighbor to pass. 

The common web-footed mole doubtless received its name on account 
of its webbed hind-feet, which led to the very natural inference that it was 
a swimming animal. But this is a complete misnomer, for not only is this 
mole not known voluntarily to swim, but in the selection of its haunts 
it shows no preference for the vicinity of water, but manifests rather a 
contrary tendency. Its home is underground, and its entire life is spent 
beneath the surface. The nest of this mole is commonly half a foot or 
mere below the surface, and from it several passages lead away in the direc- 
tion of its favorite foraging-grounds. These primary passages gradually 
approach the surface, and finally become continuous with, or open into, an 
ever-increasing multitude of tortuous galleries, which wind about in every 
direction, and sometimes come so near the surface, as barely to escape open- 
ing upon it, while at other times they are several inches deep. Along the 
most superficial of these horizontal burrows the earth is actually thrown 
up in the form of long ridges, by which the animal's progress can be traced. 
The distance that they can thus travel in a given time is almost incredible. 

The dwelling place is usually placed near a hillock or between trees 
and consists of a central chamber with passages conducting to two circular 
galleries placed one above another. The higher of these two galleries has 



264 



THE STORY OF THE' MOLE. 



a smaller diameter than the lower one. From the larger lower gallery there 
are given off several diverging runs, one of which is larger than either 
of the others, and is known as the main run, being the one which alone 
leads to the burrows driven in various directions for the purpose of procur- 
ing food. These burrows, or runs, except when so close to the surface as to 
allow of the earth being raised directly upwards in the form of a ridge 
showing their course, are marked at intervals by the well-known "mole- 
hills," which are mounds of loose earth pushed up from below, and not 
containing any internal chamber or passages. 

Since the voracity of the mole is proverbial, and its food consists exclu- 




•'kill 




-^ Kim. 

Mi 






THE MOLE AND ITS BURROW. 



sively of earth-worms, insects, and their larvae, its visits ought to be wel- 
comed alike by the farmer and the gardener. As a matter of fact, how- 
ever, the mole has an awkward habit of driving its tunnels below the drilled 
rows of young farm and garden crops, by which not only are the roots of 
the plants disturbed, but the whole row may be dried up. Moreover, it 
appears pretty certain that field moles will take advantage of runs driven 
in such localities as convenient points from which to make inroads on the 
sprouting seeds or the roots of the young plants. Then, again, in addition 
to the unsightliness of a host of mole-hills in a garden, such elevations are 



THE STORY OF THE MOLE. 265 

inconvenient in a field of standing grass, as they impede the process of 
mowing. From these and other circumstances, farmers and gardeners gen- 
erally unite in a war of extermination against the mole, although there can 
be no doubt but that in many respects its visits are a distinct advantage to 
its destroyers. 

The golden or Cape moles are so different from all others of this group 
that, they are referred to a distinct family. They are entirely confined to 
South Africa, where they are represented by about seven species, and are 
commonly termed moles by the colonists. 

In appearance these animals have some resemblance to the moles, but 
they have shorter and thicker bodies, with a deeper and blunter snout. The 
whole form is, however, admirably adapted for tunneling through the 
ground; since the eyes are totally covered beneath the hairy skin, and the 
minute ears are deeply buried in the fur. While the hind-feet retain a nor- 
mal form, the fore-feet have been specially modified for the purpose of 
digging, having only four toes, of which the two central ones are fur- 
nished with enormous triangular claws of great power. The golden moles 
derive both their popular and scientific names from the brilliant metallic 
luster of the fur, which shows various tints of green, violet, or golden bronze; 
the brilliancy of these metallic hues being much intensified when the skin is 
immersed in spirit. 

The runs are made so near the surface of the ground that the earth 
is raised above the tunnel, which can accordingly be followed with ease 
in all directions. When one of the moles is seen to be at work, owing 
to the movements of the soil, it can readily be thrown up on to the surface 
by the aid of a stick or spade. The food of the golden moles consists mainly 
of earth-worms. 









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From photograph. 



AFRICAN TWO-HORNED RHINOCEROS HEADS. 



266 



HUNTING THE RHINOCEROS 

Colonel Roosevelt Reported Killed by a Rhinoceros — Exciting Fight with This 
Ferocious Beast — The Natives Praise Bwana Tumbo — Interesting Facts About 
the Rhinoceros. 



Early in November the telegraph wires flashed the exciting news to all 
parts of the civilized world that Colonel Roosevelt, the now famous game 
slayer, had been killed by a rhinoceros while hunting on the Guas Ingishu 
Plateau in the Kisumu province of British East Africa. It is known that the 
rhinoceros hunt is a dangerous pastime and that scores of European sports- 
men have lost their lives in pursuing this ferocious brute. No wonder, then, 
if all Mr. Roosevelt's friends felt uneasy when this story reached them. Mrs. 
Roosevelt received the news, and notwithstanding the unlikelihood of the 
truth of the report and successive denials, she spent several days and nights 
of intense anxiety, scarcely closing her eyes and saying over and over again, 
"It is not true; I do not believe it." 

But at the next moment she was imagining all kinds of horrors and feel- 
ing that she could not be tranquil until she really heard from her husband 
directly. 

Meanwhile neither the Colonial office in London nor the State Depart- 
ment at Washington, nor the Smithsonian Institution, where inquiries were 
made, had got any information about the rumored accident. Messages were 
dispatched to the telegraph nearest the hunting party, and at last the follow- 
ing reassuring news was received over the transatlantic cable from the British 
commissioner at Eldama : "Roosevelt was in excellent health October 23 
and news of the party received October 30 reported all well. If anyone in the 
party is sick we, the nearest medical help, have received no news of such 
sickness." 

While this story, which probably had been let out by New York financiers, 
was setting the whole world afire, the Colonel was beating the bush in the 
Eldama ravine in search of bergo, a rare specimen of antelope, which no white 
man ever has bagged, and as one of his black-skinned beaters put it, "No 
rhino get Bwana Tumbo," adding with a broad grin: "Bwana Tumbo get 
rhino quicker." 

Nevertheless the rumor might have been true, for the two-horned rhi- 
noceros of East Africa is a most dangerous beast. The Colonel has bagged 

267 



268 HUNTING THE RHINOCEROS. 

several of these gigantic survivors of time past. One large bull fell by a 
missile from his Winchester barrel in the vicinity of Machakos, while hunting 
on the Kapiti Plains. The party was beating the bush for lions, when sud- 
denly a colossal rhino was discovered on the plains. Standing like a huge 
rock on the "velt," his unshapely form throwing an uncanny shadow over 
the grass, which he was devouring, he was a tempting quarry to our bold 
sportsman. The monstrous outlines of the great beast stood out most strikingly 
in the red glow of the scorching tropical sun. As though moved by a sudden 
impulse he swung round and stood for a moment motionless, as though carved 
in stone, its head well raised, so 'that the two formidable horns almost pressed 
against the back of its massive neck and swerved towards the Colonel. There 
is something peculiarly awe-inspiring and menacing about these weapons of 
the rhinoceros. Not that they really make him a more dangerous customer 
for the sportsman to tackle, but they certainly give that impression. The 
thought of being impaled, run through, by that ferocious dagger was by 
no means pleasant to our former President. 

There was not much time for reflection, however, for an instant later the 
big bull came for him full pelt, spitting and snorting and thundering down in 
its unwieldly fashion, but at an incredible pace. For a moment the Colonel's 
life hung by a thread. Nothing could save him but a well-aimed bullet. And 
this time the bullet found its billet. It came straight from the ex-presidential 
rifle and penetrated the neck of the on-rushing beast — a bull of unusual size 
which, tumbling head foremost, just like a rabbit, dropped dead almost at the 
proud hunter's feet. 

To see the rhinoceros grazing or resting in the midst of the bare "velt" or 
to stalk them all by himself or with a native follower to carry a rifle for him 
was as fascinating an experience as Mr. Roosevelt could desire. At the same 
time it is one of the most dangerous forms of modern sport. An English writer 
remarks with truth that even the bravest man cannot always control his senses 
on such occasions — that he is apt to get dazed and giddy. He knows that 
the slightest unsteadiness of his hand may mean his destruction. He has to 
advance a long distance on all fours, or else wiggle along on his stomach like 
a serpent, making the utmost use of whatever cover offers, and keeping note 
all the time of the direction of the wind, as the animal's scent is acute. He 
has to keep on his guard all the time against poisonous snakes and he* has to 
turn to his hunter's instincts as to how near he must get to his game before he 
fires. A distance of more than a hundred paces is very hazardous — above all, 
if the hunter wants to kill outright. 



HUNTING THE RHINOCEROS. 



269 




Photograph, Underwood. 



EAST AFRICAN BULL RHINOCEROS. 



One of our illustrations is a photographic reproduction of a huge bull- 
rhinoceros killed in British East Africa. Its largest horn measures 53^2 
inches in length. A formidable sight indeed ! 

There are many ways in which a hunter may be surprised by a rhinoceros, 
says a famous American sportsman. As he was penetrating the high grass 
of the "velt" he suddenly perceived, fifty paces in front of him, a huge dark 
object — a rhinoceros. It had not become aware of him yet, nor of the peril 
awaiting it. It got up and turned right in his direction. There was no going 
either forward or backwards for him. The grass encumbered his legs, the 
old growth mingling with the new into' an inextricable tangle. The moment 
was full of excitement. He tried cautiously to' retreat, but his feet were en- 
tangled and he slipped. Instantly he jumped up again. The rhinoceros had 
heard the noise of his fall and was making a rush for him. It was not easy 
to aim effectively, but he fired. The ringing notes of his rifle rang out like a 
bird in the air and the next instant he saw the huge beast disappearing over 
the Undulating plain, the bullet having struck one of his horns and been turned 
aside, startling the rhino and causing him to abandon his intended charge. 

Another striking encounter with a rhinoceros is thus described by the 
same traveler and sportsman. 



270 



HUNTING THE RHINOCEROS. 



"Deep-trodden paths led down to the waterside. We follow them through 
the brushwood, I leading the way, and thus reach the stream. The rush and 
the roar of the river resounds in our ears, and we catch the notes, too, of birds. 
Suddenly right in front of me the ground seems to quicken into life. My 
first notion is that it must be a gigantic crocodile; but no, it is a rhinoceros 
which has just been bathing, and which now, disturbed, is glancing in our 
direction and about to attack us or take to its heels, who can say? Escape 
seems impossible. Clasping my rifle I plunge back into the dense brush-wood. 
But the tough viscous branches project me forward again. Now for it. The 
rhinoceros is 'coming for Us.' We tumble about in all directions. Some 
seconds later we exchange stupefied glances. The animal has fled past us, 
just grazing us and bespattering us with mud, and has disappeared from 
sight. How small we felt at that moment I cannot express !" 




Prom photograph. 



EAST AFRICAN RUBBER FARM. 



One of Col. Roosevelt's most extended hunting expeditions in the Sotik 
District and around the beautiful volcanic Naivasha lake was undertaken to 



HUNTING THE RHINOCEROS. 271 

give him an opportunity to acquire a white rhinoceros for the National 
Museum. This variety is very rare and the former . President was very 
anxious to secure a specimen before they are totally extinct. This district 
is dotted with small and large farms where many Boer and German farmers 
have settled down peacefully side by side of the English residents. The 
Colonel visited several of the planters and was hospitably entertained in their 
homes. He found that most of these settlers had erected comfortable houses 
of stone or wood covered with solid thatch roofSj which offered an excellent 
protection against the scorching rays of the equatorial sun. He often par- 
took of their frugal meals, and informed himself about their condition and 
occupations. Not a few of them he found engaged in raising the rubber 
tree, which thrives exceedingly well in this hot climate. One of our illus- 
trations shows one of these rubber plantations established by a German couple 
with their native help. This country is slowly being colonized by French, 
Portuguese, Belgians, Germans, Boers and English and almost every nation- 
ality on the earth, and it^is only a question of time when it will be a white 
man's country, the natives existing only in the backwoods and on govern- 
ment reservations, as our American Indians. 

The rhinoceros is favorite game both in India and Africa. It has a 
ferocious disposition and is hard to kill. The easiest and least dangerous 
method is for the hunter to conceal himself and shoot it when it comes 
to drink at the pool. The true sportsman prefers to hunt it on horseback 
with dogs. 

As the eyes of the rhinoceros are very small, it seldom turns its head 
and therefore sees nothing but what is before it. It is to this that it owes 
its death, and never escapes if there be so much plain as to enable the 
horses of the hunters to get before it. Its pride and fury then makes it 
lay aside all thoughts of escaping, except by victory over its enemy. For 
a moment it stands at bay; then at a start runs straight forward at the 
horse which is nearest. The rider easily avoids the attack by turning 
short to one side. This is the fatal instant; a naked man who is mounted 
behind the principal horseman, drops off the horse, and, unseen by the 
rhinoceros, gives it, with a sword, a stroke across the tendon of the 
heel, which renders it incapable either of flight or resistance. 

Several travelers have mentioned that there are certain birds which con- 
stantly attend the rhinoceros, and give him warning of approaching danger. 
Their accounts were either received with silent contempt, or treated with 



272 THE STORY OF THE RHINOCEROS. 

open ridicule, as preposterous extensions of the traveler's privilege. -of ro- 
mancing. I can bear witness to the truth of these reports. Once while 
hunting the rhinoceros in Africa, I saw a huge female lying in the jungle 
asleep. My first thought was to photograph her and then attack her. T 
began to crawl toward her, but before I could reach the proper distance 
several rhinoceros-birds, by which she was attended, warned her of the 
impending danger, by sticking their bills into her ear, and uttering their 
harsh, grating cry. Thus aroused, she suddenly sprang to her feet, and 
crashed away through the jungle at a rapid trot, and I saw no more of 
her. 

These rhinoceros-birds are constant attendants upon the hippopotamus 
and the four varieties of rhinoceros, their object being to feed upon the 
ticks and other parasitic insects that swarm upon these animals. They are 
of a grayish color, and are nearly as large as a common thrush; their voice 
is very similar to that of the mistletoe-thrush. Many a time have these 
ever-watchful birds disappointed me in my stalk, and tempted me to invoke 
an anathema upon their devoted heads. They are the best friends the 
rhinoceros has, and rarely fail to awaken him, even in his soundest nap. 
"Chukuroo" perfectly understands their warning, and springing to his 
feet, he generally first looks about him in every direction, after which he 
invariably makes of. 

Next to the elephant in size, comes the rhinoceros, which with the 
hippopotamus, lays claim to bulk and ferocity unequalled by any other mem- 
ber of the animal kingdom. The rhinoceros is found in the rivers of Cen- 
tral Africa and Southern Asia. It can only live in tropical climates. 

The length of the rhinoceros is usually about twelve feet, and this is 
also nearly the girth of its body. The skin, which is of a blackish color, is 
disposed, about the neck, into large plaits or folds. A fold of the same 
kind passes from the shoulders to the fore legs; another from the hind 
part of the back to the thighs. The skin is naked, rough, and covered with 
a kind of tubercles, or large callous granulations. Between the folds, and 
under the belly, it is soft, and of a light rose-color. The horns are com- 
posed of a closely-packed mass of horn fibers, growing from the skin, and 
having no connection with the bones of the skull, although there are prom- 
inences on the latter beneath each horn. Although the African species, 
are entirely dependent on their enormous horns, as weapons of offense and 
defense, the Asiatic kinds, in which the horns are smaller, seem to rely 
chiefly upon their sharply-pointed lower tusks, which are capable of inflicting 



THE STORY OF THE RHINOCEROS. 



273 



terrific gashes. All are mainly- abroad at night, and while some resemble 
the tapirs in frequenting tall grass-jungles and swampy districts, others 
seem to prefer more or less open plains. Their food is entirely vegetable; 
but whereas some species live almost exclusively on grass, the food of others 
consists mainly of twigs and small boughs of trees. At the present day 
these animals are restricted to South-Eastern Asia and Africa. 

The - single-horned rhinoceros is not exceeded in size by any land 
animal except the elephant, and in strength and power it gives place to none. 
Its nose is armed with a formidable weapon, a hard and solid horn, some- 




GREAT INDIAN RHINOCEROS. 



times more than three feet in length, and, at the base, eighteen inches in 
circumference; and with this it is able to defend itself against the attack of 
every ferocious animal. 

The body of the rhinoceros is defended by a skin so hard as to be almost 
impenetrable, except in the under parts, by either knife or spear. 

Some hunters have created the impression that the hide of the rhinoceros 
will turn a leaden bullet and sometimes an iron one. This is a popular error, 
for a common leaden ball will pierce the hide at a distance of thirty or 
forty paces, especially if a double charge of powder be used, which is the 



274 



THE STORY OF THE RHINOCEROS. 



custom with all rhinoceros hunters. The most deadly aim is just behind 
the shoulder. The skull is too thick and the brain pan too small for a 
successful shot at the head. 

I once had an excellent opportunity to observe the righting quality of 
the rhinoceros in conflict with other animals. It was in the province of 
Oude. I had become separated from my men and had lost my bearings. 
Night overtook me, and I decided to camp on the banks of a lagoon beneath 




INDIAN RHINOCEROS FIGHTING AN ELEPHANT. 



a huge peepul tree. How long I had slept, I know not, but the moon was 
almost perpendicular when I awoke, and it was as bright as day. A sud- 
den harsh scream was the cause of my rousing up. I knew it well. 

It was the trumpet of an elephant! 

Instinctively I bounded to my feet, and looked around me in consterna- 
tion. I was in the midst of a herd of wild elephants! 

The danger of my position flashed on me in an instant. The wild 



THE STORY OF THE RHINOCEROS. 



275 



elephant is a dangerous brute at the best of times, but at night, and in 
herds, he tramples over everything, and feels more at home and free from 
clanger than in the day, apparently. 

But these elephants did not seem to be aware of my presence. They 
were evidently excited about something else, and had not observed me, 
asleep in the shadow of the peepul. 

They were rushing about in the open ground, most of those I could 
see being females, as I knew by the absence of. the tusks, and some sort 




INDIAN RHINOCEROS AFTER SHEDDING ITS HORN. 



of contest seemed to be going on among them. What it was, I could not 
see at first. 

At last a chorus of trumpetings and vicious pig-like squeals broke out 
from the center of the moving mass, and I saw the female elephants scatter 
right and left in dismay. 

Then I discerned a terrible conflict. A huge bull elephant rushed for- 
ward, with his trunk curled up tightly behind the long formidable tusks 
out of harm's way, striving to pierce a strange antagonist. 

A long, low, uncouth-looking beast, of some five feet in height at the 



276 THE STORY OF THE RHINOCEROS. 

shoulder, and shaped much like an immense hog, was running full -tilt at 
the old elephant. 

The short, upright horn on the snout, the contour of the animal, and 
the loose folds of skin that covered his ribs, proclaimed that most dangerous 
of all animals, the Indian rhinoceros. 

If it had been alone, and I had met it, I should have counted myself 
lost, such is the sullen and vindictive nature of this horrible beast. It is 
the only animal known that will attack man habitually, wherever met, and 
all the other wild beasts of India fear and avoid it. 

But for the present the attention of the rhinoceros was fully engaged. 
Besides the old bull now charging at him, another younger one was skulk- 
ing around to take him in the rear, and a third lay close by, with his entrails 
gushing out of a frightful wound inflicted by the deadly horn. As I 
looked, the old bull elephant made his charge, that seemed as if it would 
carry everything before it. 

But the rhinoceros, with surprising agility for a creature of such unwieldy 
appearance, leaped actively to one side, and, running around, tried hard 
to get in at the unprotected flank of the elephant. The latter as sharply 
threw his hind-quarters around, and received the pig-like brute on his tusks. 
But, deprived of the impetus of his charge, he was unable to pierce the tough 
hide of the rhinoceros, which is thick enough to turn a leaden bullet at 
close quarters. 

Then the two stood head to head for some minutes, the rhinoceros striv- 
ing to wriggle his way between the forelegs of the elephant, to use his horn 
with effect. The elephant, on his part, strove hard to pin the rhinoceros to 
the earth, but in vain. 

Presently I noticed the second elephant. He was charging, and close 
to the rhinoceros. The latter saw him, too, and suddenly broke away from 
his first antagonist, rushing to meet the second. The young bull charged 
gallantly, but he was not up to the tricks of his wily adversary. The 
rhinoceros swerved, as he came, and the excited elephant missed his mark, 
lumbering past in vain effort. Not so the rhinoceros. As quick as thought 
he rushed in at the unguarded side of his heedless foe, and I could see him 
working away at the elephant's side, like a pig rooting. The elephant gave 
a hoarse roar of pain, and tried to turn, but the active rhinoceros was too 
quick for him, and he fell down, helpless and dying. 

And now came the turn of the old bull. Cautious and wary, he watched 
his opportunity, and rushed at the rhinoceros from the side. The latter, 



THE STORY OF THE RHINOCEROS. 



277 



owing to his engagement with his other enemy, and his somewhat defective 
vision, did not see him till too late. 

The great bull elephant thundered on like an avalanche, and in an 
instant more the terrible tusks, nearly seven feet in length in the clear, as 
I judged, were buried in the side of the redoubtable rhinoceros. 

A shrill squeal of pain from the latter, and he tried in vain to extricate 
himself. The battle was over. He had slain two elephants, and died game 
himself. . 

I cannot tell you the absorbing interest with which I had watched this 




TWO-HORNED AFRICAN RHINOCEROS. 



curious conflict. True I was an unwilling spectator, for I did not dare to 
move out of the shadow of the tree, for fear of attracting notice. Now, 
however, an idea struck me. 

Excited and furious as the old bull was, it was probable that the flush of 
his victory might make him tenfold more dangerous to me. 

The battle had moved so close to me, during the vicissitudes of its 
varying fortune, that the last elephant, in his fall, had almost brushed the 
foliage of a bush I stood behind, My resolution was taken in an instant. 



278 THE STORY OF THE RHINOCEROS. 

I must kill the old bull, or be killed myself almost inevitably. He was 
not ten feet from me, and striving to pull clear from the body of the 
rhinoceros, which he had pinned into the very ground. 

I ran round the fallen elephant, and, before he could draw clear, I stood 
almost touching his temple with my rifle. 

One flash! It was enough! Struck through the brain, the old bull 
dropped instantaneously, and I was safe! 

The female elephants, panic-stricken at the noise and the flash, scattered 
in all directions in dismay. 

In five minutes I was alone! 

In Southeastern Africa both species of rhinoceros generally leave their 
lairs about four o'clock in the afternoon, or, in districts where there are many 
-human beings, somewhat later. They commence feeding in the direction of 
their drinking places, to which they travel by regular beaten paths, and arrive 
at the same somewhere about dark. If the drinking place is a mudhole they 
frequently refresh themselves with a roll, after drinking their fill. They 
then start for their favorite thorn feeding grounds, where they remain till 
daybreak, when they generally again drink. At an. earlier or later hour after 
this, the time being to some extent dependent on the freedom of the district 
from human intrusion, they retire to their sleeping places, which they reach 
at any rate before the heat of the day. The lair is always in an extremely 
sheltered and deeply-shaded spot, and so heavily do they slumber that a 
practiced stalker could almost touch them with the muzzle of a gun, unless 
they are awakened by the birds which always accompany them. 



WART-HOG'S NATIVE HAUNTS 



Mr. Roosevelt Kills a Wart-hog — The Ugliest Animal He Saw in Africa — The Story 
of This Beast. 



While our ex-President did not care so much for the small game that 
crowded his African hunting grounds, but rather went for the big monsters 
which, to the genuine sportsman, furnish the chief attraction of the wilderness, 
still he did not fail to take notice of all other interesting members of the 
animal kingdom that crossed his hunting trail. One of the strangest and 




Photograph, Underwood. 



YOUNG EAST AFRICAN WART-HOG. 

279 



280 



WART-HOG'S NATIVE HAUNTS. 



ugliest of these inhabitants of the tropics — the wart-hog — was shot by- him 
a few clays after his first lion hunt, in the neighborhood of Potha. 

Our illustration represents a scene that might have been observed by the 
Roosevelt hunting expedition as its members were roving around along the 
plains. The leopard has climbed up a tree and is hiding on a branch, eagerly 
watching for its savory prey. He crouches for a sudden leap as soon as 
the unsuspecting victim comes within his reach. He generally dives for its 
thick neck, in whose soft and tender flesh he buries his sharp and pointed 
teeth before the hog has time to prepare for defense. With his powerful 




From photograph. 



HEAD OF WART-HOG. 



jaws around its neck and his elastic paws, armed with needle-like claws, in 
its flanks, the leopard cannot be shaken off and the struggle generally ends 
with the death of the hog. 

The animal bagged by Mr. Roosevelt was an old sow, who was grazing 
on the "velt" with her young ones. He found that the wart-hog, notwith- 
standing its comparatively small size, is a dangerous foe to meet. It often 




LEOPARD READY TO LEAP ON A WART-HOG. 



281 



282 WART-HOG'S NATIVE HAUNTS. 

succeeds in placing the hunter's life in jeopardy and ripping up his horse 
with its long tusks, leaving him to choose between continuing the fight on foot 
or seeking his salvation in a sudden flight. 

The flesh of this animal is as delicious and tender as that of our tame hogs . 
and it is often hunted to supply the tables of the African farmers with one 
of its most savory and tempting dishes. After having secured a few boars 
as specimens for the National Museum, Mr. Roosevelt killed no more wart- 
hogs, except when it was necessary to get some fresh meat for his native 
servants. 

Travelers in East Africa have many stories to tell about the fury and 
savage ferocity of this beast. It never attacks man unless in self-defense, 
but when pursued and brought at bay it shows an ugly disposition and fights 
bravely for its life. It is no> coward and very seldom takes refuge to its under- 
ground caves when persecuted by native hunters, or other wild animals. 

The wart-hog is an interesting animal, and while still very numerous in 
Africa it is probably doomed to extinction, as it is constantly retiring before 
the advancing civilization and cannot be domesticated. The following facts 
as to its nature and habits will no doubt deserve our readers' attention : 

I do not know of any uglier animal than the wart-hog, with its huge 
tusks, big warty protuberances below the eyes and fierce-looking bristly mane. 
They are found over a large part 6f Eastern Africa, and are dangerous animals 
to come upon unawares. 

In Abyssinia, its habits are very similar to those of ordinary pigs. It 
lives amongst bushes or in ravines during the day, and comes out to feed in 
the evening, still keeping much to> bush- jungle. The large males are usually 
solitary; the younger animals and "females live in small herds, apparently not 
exceeding eight or ten in number. I never saw large ''sounders," such as 
are so commonly met with in the case of the Indian hog. It feeds much on 
roots, which it digs up by means of its huge tusks. It also appears to> dig 
large holes, in which it occasionally lies; these are perhaps intended for the 
young. Despite its formidable appearance, the Abyssinian wart-hog is a 
comparatively timid animal, far inferior in courage to the Indian wild hog. 
Several wTiich I wounded showed no inclination to 1 charge under circumstances 
in which an Indian pig would certainly have shown fight. The flesh is savory, 
but dry and hard, even in comparatively young animals.' 

When brought to> bay by dogs, wart-hogs make a determined stand, and 
inflict severe injuries on their assailants. If excited, they carry their long 
tails stuck straight upright. 



THE STORY OF THE WART-HOG. 



283 



In South-Eastern Africa — where they are known to the natives by the 
name of Indhlovuclawani — wart-hogs are found on the plains in light thorn- 
jungles; and they are abundant in the districts around Mount Kilima-Njaro. 
In those regions they generally occupy the deserted burrow of an aard-vark, 
or other animal. They have a most curious mode of exit when they bolt — 
a dangerous one if you are not up to it. As they emerge from a hole, they 
turn a somersault on to the back of it, instead of coming straight out like 
an ordinary animal, and as that is just the spot where one would naturally 




WART HOG OF SOUTH EASTERN AFRICA. 



stand, more than one man has had his legs ripped open before he learnt the 
wisdom of experience. On more than one occasion I have seen a male wart- 
hog walk deliberately through a pack of large hounds without taking the 
slightest notice of them, so long as they refrained from biting. Did, however, 
one bolder than the rest, venture to come to close quarters, the wart-hog with 
a sudden jerk would either lay its assailant crippled on the ground, or send 
it howling away. 

The young are striped, as are the young of the wild boar. 




STORY OF THE LINSANG. 



Next to the ocelot, I think the linsang is the most beautifully marked ani- 
mal I ever met. The linsang is related to' the civet and there are four varieties 
of it, three Oriental and one African. 

It has a long, slender body, short limbs, long head and neck, and a tail 
longer than the head and body combined. The claws can be completely with- 
drawn within their sheaths ; the soles of the feet are hairy. 

It has no scent pouch like the civet. 

It is not only in the color of its fur, but the texture also, that the linsang 
is beautiful. The fur is short and soft and so thick that the skin of the animal 
looks like a pile of velvet. The ground color is reddish, freely marked with 
bold black spots, while the long tail is circled by black rings. 

This striking combination and arrangement of colors has suggested the 
name of tiger-civet for this animal, but it is better known by the name of 
linsang. 

They are all flesh-eating animals, but some of them also, feed upon insects. 
The linsangs of Asia have larger spots than the African species. 

The earliest known of these animals was the Javan linsang from Java, 
Borneo, and perhaps Sumatra. It is the smallest of the linsangs. 

The Burmese linsang, which is the largest, and handsomest, of the group, 
appears to be a rare animal, and is at present known only by two. specimens, 
one obtained from near Moulmein, and the other in South Tenasserim. The 

284 



THE STORY OF THE LIN SANG. 



285 



fail is slightly shorter than the head and body; the length of the two latter 
being about nineteen inches, and that of the former (including the hair at the 
tip) just under seventeen inches. The body has a grayish ground-color, 
marked with about six very broad and somewhat irregular brownish-black 




bands extending across the back, and separated by very narrow intervals. On 
the flanks and neck the markings form broken lines and spots, one very distinct 
line always extending from behind the ear to the shoulder. The outer surfaces 
of the fore-limbs and of the thighs are spotted; and the tail has seven com- 
plete dark rings, separated by narrower light interspaces. 



286 THE STORY OF THE LIN SANG. 

The spotted linsang, which is found from the Southeastern Himalaya to 
Yunan, is a somewhat smaller animal; the length of the head and body being- 
only fifteen inches. It is readily distinguished by its coloration ; the back being 
marked with rows of large oblong spots, instead of bands. 

A tame specimen of this beautiful animal was once kept by a Mr. Hodgson 
in Nipal. He describes it as very docile, fond of notice, and never giving vent 
to any kind of sound. It was free from the strong odor characteristic of the 
true civets, and was fed upon raw meat. He states that in its wild condition 
this species is equally at home on trees and on the ground; and that it dwells 
and breeds in the hollows of decayed trees. It preys chiefly upon small birds, 
upon which it is wont to pounce from the coover of the grass. 

The African linsang, of which some of the distinctive characters have been 
already mentioned, is found only on the West Coast, in Sierra Leone and 
Fernando' Po*, and is, therefore, widely separated from its Oriental relatives. 
The tail is somewhat longer than the head and body, measuring upwards of 
forty and one-half inches ; whereas the total length of the head and body is but 
thirty-eight inches. The spots, as already mentioned, are smaller than in the 
Oriental linsangs, and, with the exception of some stripes on the back of the 
head, and a line extending from the neighborhood of the ear to' the shoulder, 
do* not run together into lines or patches. The tail is peculiar in that the- light 
rings separating the large dark bands are divided in the middle by very narrow 
dark rings. 




THE STORY OF THE FOX. 



Fox-hunting is a common but exciting sport in both England and 
America. Both the red and the gray fox leave a trail that is easily fol- 
lowed by the hounds. The well-known scent of the fox is secreted as it 
runs and is easily detected by the human as well as the canine nose. There 
is no doubt that the natural cunning of the fox has been greatly increased 
by long experience in matching its wits against dogs and hunters, for in 
countries where the fox is not hunted it is far less cunning than either the 
gray or red fox of America and England. 

The reds are bolder in pursuit, and hunt over a much greater territory 
than the grays. Whether the grays ever climb trees in pursuit of prey I 
am uncertain, but they take to a tree as readily as a cat when run hard by 
hounds. I think it nearly certain that they climb for persimmons and 
grapes. Red foxes never climb trees under any circumstances; when hard 
run they go to earth. Gray foxes run before hounds only a short distance, 
doubling constantly and for a short time, when they either hole in a tree, 
or climb one. I have known the red fox to run straight away nearly 
twenty miles. Very commonly they run eight or ten miles away, and 
then run back in a parallel course. I have known them to run the four 
sides of a square. It is doubtful whether a first-rate specimen of the red 
fox, taken at his best in point of condition, can either be killed or run to 
earth by any pack of hounds living, such are his matchless speed and en- 

287 



288 



THE STORY OF THE FOX. 



durance. It is but a sorry pack which fails to kill or tree a grayJox in 
an hour's run. The young of the gray fox closely resemble small blackish 
puppies; those of the red fox are distinctly fox-like from the hour of their 
birth. 

Many tales are related of the fox's cunning when pursued, such as 
driving another fox out of its home, and forcing it to substitute itself as 
the chase; diving into a heap of manure, so that the dogs could not perceive 
its scent; jumping over a wall, running a little way, coming back again, 
and lying under the wall until all the dogs had passed, and then leaping 




RED FOXES IN WINTER. 



a second time over the same place where it had passed before, and making 
off on its old track. 

On the banks of the Kentucky River rise huge rocky bluffs, many 
feet in height. A fox that lived near this river was constantly hunted, and 
as regularly lost over the bluff. Now, nothing short of wings would have 
enabled the animal to escape with life down a perpendicular cliff. At last 
I determined to discover the means by which the animal baffled all of us, 
and I concealed myself near the bluff. 



THE STORY OF THE FOX. 



289 



Accordingly, in good time the fox came to the top of the cliff and 
looked over. He then let himself down the face of the cliff by a movement 
between a leap and a slide, and landed on a shelf not quite a foot in width 
about ten feet down. 

The fox then disappeared in a hole above the shelf. On examination 
the shelf turned out to be the mouth of a wide fissure in the rock, into 
which the fox always escaped. 




ARCTIC FOX WITH MURRE'S EGG. 



But how was he to get out again? He might slide down ten feet, but 
he could never leap ten feet from a ten-inch shelf up the face of a per- 
pendicular rock. This impossibility caused me to make a search, and at 
length I discovered an easier entrance into the cave from the level ground. 

The fox was too wise to use that entrance when the hounds were be- 
hind him, so he was accustomed to cut short the scent by dropping down 



£90 THE STORY OF THE FOX. 

the rock, and then, when all the dogs were at the edge of the cliff, he 
walked out at his leisure by the other entrance. 

The fox is a native of almost every quarter of the globe; it is of so 
wild and savage a nature, that it is impossible fully to tame him. He is 
esteemed the most sagacious and crafty of all the beasts of prey. The 
former quality he shows in his mode of providing for himself an asylum, 
where he retires from pressing dangers, dwells, and brings up his young; 
and his craftiness is discovered by his schemes to catch lambs, geese, hens, 
all kinds of small birds, rabbits and field mice. 

When it is possible for him conveniently to do so, the fox forms his 
burrow near the border of a wood, in the neighborhood of some farm or 
village. He there listens to the crowing of the cocks, and the cries of the 
poultry. He scents them at a distance; he chooses his time with judgment; 
he conceals his road, as well as his design; he slips forward with caution, 
sometimes even trailing his body; and seldom makes a fruitless expedition. 
If he can leap the wall, or creep in underneath, he ravages the barn-yard, 
puts all to death, and retires softly with his prey; which he either hides 
under the adjacent herbage, or carries off to his kennel. 

With regard to the caution displayed by foxes in taking a bait, I once 
had the good fortune of observing, on a winter evening, a fox which 
for many preceding days had been allured with loop baits, and as often 
as it ate one it sat comfortably down, wagging his brush. The nearer it 
approached the trap, the longer did it hesitate to take the baits, and the 
oftener did it make the tour round the catching-place. When arrived near 
the trap, it squatted down, and eyed the bait for ten minutes at least; 
whereon it ran three or four times, round the trap, then it stretched out 
one of its fore-paws after the bait, but did not touch it; again a pause, 
during: which the fox stared immovahlv at the bait. At last, as if in 
despair, the animal made a rush, and was caught by the neck. 

The kit fox is the smallest and prettiest of North American foxes. It 
lives in an open, treeless district and makes its burrow in the ground. The 
back and tail are dark gray and the under parts white. 

The Arctic fox, which is found all over the Arctic region, differs from 
all other members of the fox family, particularly in its change of dress 
from summer to winter. In summer it is bluish gray on the back, and 
white beneath. In the winter its coat turns to a pure white, so that it 
can scarcely be distinguished from its snowy surroundings. In the long 
Arctic nights the hunter constantly hears its yapping bark. In the sum- 



THE STORY OF THE FOX. 



291 



mer it preys upon the numerous land and aquatic birds. What it lives 
on in winter when the birds have left for a southern latitude no one 
seems to know, although it is believed that, like the squirrel, they lay by 
a store of provisions during the summer months. The Arctic fox is 
fond of bird's eggs as well as of birds, and I once shot one which had a 
murre's tgg in its mouth. 

In Asia there are several breeds of desert foxes, the largest specimens 




AFRICAN ASSE FOX. 



having a striped appearance. In Central Asia we find the Corsac fox, of 
a paler color, white under parts, a black-tipped tail, and lacking the stripe 
of the desert fox. 

It is a thin-brained creature, possessing none of the cunning of the red 
and gray foxes of Europe and America. It is too lazy to make its own 
burrow, and finds its home in the burrow of the marmot, which that animal 
has either deserted or from which he has been evicted. 

Of the true foxes the pretty little Indian fox is the smallest, measuring 



292 



THE STORY OF THE FOX. 



only twenty inches from the tip of the snout to the root of the tail:" Its 
fur. is gray, tinged with red. It is by no means timid, and I have shot 
one that walked up boldly to my camp. Its burrow is in the open plain, 
and it lives on lizards, rats, crabs, white ants and various insects. 

The Indian fox has no scent, and therefore is seldom hunted with 
hounds. 

Another small and pretty member of the fox family is the fennec, of 
Northern Africa. It has enormous ears for such a small animal. The color 




FENNECS, OR AFRICAN FOXES. 



of the fur varies from fawn to buff, the under parts being white, and the 
tail black. 

Like the common fox, the fennec makes a burrow, which is generally 
in the tufts of low plants in the desert. The inside of the burrow is lined 
with feathers, hair, and soft vegetable substances, and is remarkable for its 
cleanliness. The burrows are made with wonderful rapidity — so quickly, 
indeed, that the animal seems to ! sink into* the ground. 




THE STORY OF THE WEASEL. 



No one would think, on seeing a weasel for the first time, that the 
graceful, slender little animal, with its brown back, pretty, white throat, 
funny face, and sparkling- eyes, was such a fierce, bloodthirsty creature. But 
that little head is full of murderous designs, and has the courage of a giant. 
Rats and mice are everywhere hunted out and destroyed by the weasel. It 
inflicts a bite on the head which pierces the brain, and seldom fails to lay 
the victim dead at- its feet by one stroke. 

The weasel is also a destroyer of newly-hatched chickens and young 
clucks, as well as of the smaller feathered tribe; and although it does good 
service in keeping down the mice, it is a bad neighbor to the hare and rabbit- 
warren. It is a most active and persevering hunter; few trees will stop it 
when in search of birds' nests, which it robs, not only by sucking the eggs, 
but by carrying off the young. 

The weasel is excessively useful to farmers on account of its unrelenting 
war on rats and mice, and in an incredibly short space of time it extirpates 
them from a barn or stack. It hunts by scent like clogs, and tracks the 
unfortunate rat with the most deadly certainty. It is so courageous that 
it will even attack men, and is by no means a despicable antagonist, as its 
instinct invariably leads it to clash at the throat, where a bite from its long 
sharp teeth is ahvays dangerous. 

293 



294 THE STORY OF THE WEASEL. 

The weasel's nest is composed of dry leaves and herbage, and is ma'de in 
a hollow tree, dry ditch or hole in the side of a bank. If any one approaches 
the nest while the young are helpless, the mother and often the male will 
attack the intruder with great fury, showing courage to a remarkable degree. 

The pretty little South African weasel is worthy of mention, 'not only 
on account of its remarkable coloration, but also as being the sole represen- 
tative of the weasels in Africa south of the Sahara. This species is distin- 
guished from all the other weasels by having the ground-color of the fur 
black, with the upper part of the head and neck white, and four pale 
brownish white stripes running along the back; the tapering tail being white. 

I have on several occasions witnessed this animal tantalize the lion and 
other large animals of South Africa. It has a shrill cry, and, secure in its nest 
among the rocks, it comes to the entrance and sets up a peculiar moan. 
Should a lion be within hearing he proceeds to investigate, and the moan 
is lessened until the lion believes himself about to find a victim. When he 
approaches quite near, the little creature retreats to a secure place but con- 
tinues its cry. The lion after a vain search gives up the attempt. 

The weasel is very often called "wormlike," and a better name could 
scarcely be applied to it, for anything more wormlike could hardly 
be imagined in .a hairy quadruped or four-footed animal. The legs 
are extremely short in relation to the body, which is slender in the highest 
degree, and almost regularly cylindrical from one end to the other. Then 
the neck is of most disproportionate length, and carries the head out so far, 
that the forelegs appear as if placed quite at the hinder end of the chest, 
instead of in the front of it. The head passes gradually into the neck, and 
the neck into the body. The head is flattened, and bears little, glittering 
savage-looking eyes, and small rounded ears. The length from snout to 
root of tail does not exceed eight inches. The tail is about two inches long. 
The fur is light reddish-brown above, and white below; in northern latitudes 
the brown parts assume a much lighter color in winter, so that the weasel 
undergoes a change of coat similar to, but less extensive than that under- 
gone by the ermine. 

The weasel is a good climber, and makes use of his skill in this accom- 
plishment to prey upon birds, their eggs, and young. It will pursue its prey 
over fields, in trees, in subterranean burrows, or across water. Like many 
of the wild cats, it kills far more than is necessary for its support, and in 
pursuance of its favorite occupation of slaughter shows an unequaled cour- 
age and pertinacity. Its power of keeping its presence of mind under very 



THE STORY OF THE WEASEL. 



295 



While riding 



trying circumstances is well shown in the following anecdote 
through a field one day I saw at a short distance a kite pounce on some 
object on the ground, and rise with it in his talons. In a few moments, how- 
ever, the kite began to show signs of great uneasiness, rising rapidly in the 
air, or as quickly falling, and wheeling irregularly round, whilst it was 
evidently endeavoring to force some obnoxious thing from it with its feet. 




THE WEASEL AND ITS PREY. 



After a sharp but short contest, the kite fell suddenly to the earth, not far 
from where I was intently watching the manoeuvre. I instantly rode up to 
the spot, when a weasel ran away from the kite, apparently unhurt, leaving 
the bird dead, with a hole eaten through the skin under the wing, and the 
large blood-vessels of the part cut through. 




GIRAFFES BROWSING AMONG THE TREES. 



396 



HUNTING THE GIRAFFE 

Mr. Roosevelt Bags Two Bull Giraffes and Kermit Rides Down and Kills One — Diffi- 
culties in Hunting This Long-Sighted and Wary Animal — Peculiar Habits of the 
Giraffe. ■ 



Mr. Roosevelt was anxious to secure a bull and a cow giraffe for the 
National Museum. While he often saw both single animals and small troops 
of this long-necked inhabitant of the velt he soon found that it was very 
difficult to approach it by stalking. The giraffe, owing to its immense tall 
neck, on the top of which its head towers eighteen feet above the ground, 
and its keen eyesight, is able to descry its enemies at a distance of one to two 
miles, and thus has time to disappear before the sportsman can reach it. It 
was while visiting at Captain Slatter's ostrich farm near the picturesque 
Kilimakiu mountain and immediately after the exciting rhinoceros hunt re- 
lated in another chapter, that the Colonel got a chance to satisfy his desire. 
Starting out from the camp, which was pitched at Potha, in search of prey 
he came across a small herd of giraffes browsing in a little grove of mimosa 
trees. But all his swift bullets could do was to chase the beasts away. To 
see the whole herd of giraffes in rapid motion was a strange sight to our 
American hunter. The characteristic pace made their streaked bodies swing 
to and fro. and their necks looked like so many masts of ships rolling about 
in a heavy sea, while the pendulous swinging of their tails accompanied every 
motion of their legs. 

The giraffe is not only the tallest of all animals but is also the only animal 
which is entirely mute. This strange lack of voice has caused a distinguished 
African traveler to assume that his tail takes the place of an "organ of 
speech." Its variegated swinging, turning, switching and curving constitute, 
in his opinion, a code of signals, a kind of animal "deaf-and-dumb language." 
This "tail language" is supplemented by expressive postures of neck and 
body, so that the giraffes have quite an extensive vocabulary at their com- 
mand in communicating with one another. 

The giraffe is by nature shy, and when much hunted, like all other 
animals, becomes very cautious. In the open plains it is very difficult to 
approach it nearer than within five or six hundred feet. It is exceedingly 
keen of smell and hearing, and still more so of sight, and taxes the skill of 
even a good sportsman to the utmost, especially in East Africa, where the 

297 



298 HUNTING THE GIRAFFE. 

climate and the rough surface of the ground make the use of horses well 
nigh impossible. The large, lustrous eye commands a wide angle of vision, 
and the leading bull or cow is constantly on the lookout while the herd rests 
in the shade of the tree. A switch of the long tail warns the herd and it 
seeks safety in immediate flight. The animal's pace is a peculiar gallop, the 
fore and hind legs of the same side moving at the same time. 

No wonder, then, if the Colonel was disappointed in his first attempt to 
slay this enormous beast. The next day, however, he set out again, accom- 
panied by his hospitable host, Captain Slatter, and this time was successful. 
They came on a small troop of giraffes browsing in an acacia grove. A 
swift bullet from the former President's Winchester struck the biggest bull 
and off the whole herd went with the speed of an express train. And now 
began an exciting chase along the velt for several hours, for our Rough 
Rider had made up his mind not to let his victim escape him this time. 
Riding at full speed along a rocky ground, full of wart-hog holes and other 
pitfalls, he sent bullet upon bullet after the fleeing animals. The largest 
bull at last came down, and after another hour's wild chase one more of 
the herd, a smaller bull, was added to the Smithsonian collection of rare and 
valuable specimens. 

Mr. Edmund Heller at once began preparing the skins of the animals. 
This is a very difficult task, especially in this case, one of the specimens 
being an old bull, because large quantities of salt and alum were needed, and 
large vessels for the impregnation of the skins. This is the reason that so 
few museums possess skins of full-grown bull giraffes like those our Na- 
tional Museum now has, thanks to our ex-President's untiring efforts. 
These skins grow, naturally, more and more valuable the rarer the animals 
become. The natives kill thousands of these inoffensive animals every year 
for European traders, who pay from twenty to thirty dollars apiece for the 
skins. Mr. Roosevelt, therefore, realized that it was high time to secure 
these skins for America; for, in spite of all protective laws, the giraffe will 
soon be counted among the extinct races of animals. 

Hundreds of giraffes are killed by lions, against which they are com- 
paratively defenseless, the only weapon of defense they use being their heels. 
The powerful kick of the bull giraffe is apt to keep a lion at a respectable 
distance. He is even able to shake off his enemy and run away from him, 
and where other game is plentiful the lion will leave the giraffe alone. 
Nevertheless giraffes are often killed by lions, between whose teeth and the 
human hunter he will not escape destruction. 



HUNTING THE GIRAFFE. 299 

Meanwhile Kermit and Sir Albert Pease had been out on an exploration 
in another direction. They surprised a herd of giraffes on the open steppe 
and immediately gave them chase. Off they scampered over the rough, 
craggy ground, clapping the spurs to their horses, Kermit almost flying 
on the wings of the wind and sending bullet upon bullet into the huge 
quarry, until his horse was outdone and he had to jump off and continue 
the race on foot. He was in splendid trim, full of courage and eager anxiety 
to outdo his companions, and ran for all his life was worth for about two 
miles. No more firing was necessary, however, for he found the large bull 
stretched on the ground, Overcome by the many wounds inflicted by his 
pursuers and dead as a door nail. It was a fine specimen, measuring fully 
eighteen feet from the tops of its front hoofs to the crown of its head, and 
even larger than the old bull bagged by the proud father, who felt almost 
more delighted over his son's powers and achievements than over his own 
success. 

We now let a famous African traveler and sportsman tell what he knows 
about the giraffe from his own observations. Says he : • 

One of the most curious sights I ever witnessed was a giraffe drinking. 
It was on the edge of Kalahari Desert in South Africa. I had gone into 
camp near a stream, and while my men were preparing the evening meal, I 
was reclining near a clump> of bushes, enjoying my pipe — a Boer fashion of 
smoking before meals, as well as after — when I heard a noise near the stream 
below me. Looking in that direction I saw a pair of full grown young 
giraffes that had stopped at the edge of the stream and were preparing to 
drink. 

Although they have such long necks they are not long enough to reach 
the ground when the giraffe is standing in an ordinary position. 

The male giraffe placed one forefoot slightly in front of the other and 
then began straddling his forelegs wide apart. Little by little with a jerky 
motion he spread his legs until they were far enough apart to enable him to 
reach the water, but he made three attempts before he was successful. He 
was such a comical sight that I burst out laughing. They heard me, looked 
up and saw me, and then took to their heels. 

My native men had told me that the giraffe never drinks, but I knew 
then that they were mistaken. It is certain, however, that the giraffes of 
the North Kalahari Desert will go from seven to eight months without 
water. 

The giraffe is the tallest, most graceful and one of the most remarkable 



300 



THE STORY OF THE GIRAFFE. 



of all animals. It belongs to a family apart from any other in natural his- 
tory. The chief point of contrast, and one which has been the source of 
much discussion among scientific men, is the pair of horn-like appendages 
on the top of the giraffe's head. As it is largely owing to the peculiar nature 
of these appendages that the giraffe is referred to a distinct family, they 
require somewhat fuller notice. These horns, as they may be conveniently 
called, are only a few inches in length, and are present in both sexes, making 




HABITS OF THE GIRAFFE. 



their appearance even before birth. They are at first entirely separate from 
the bones of the skull, although in later life completely uniting with them. 
They are thus essentially different from the horn-cores of the oxen and their 
allies, from which they are likewise distinguished by being invested with skin 
instead of horn. The giraffe was formerly extensively found from Nubia to 
the Cape of Good Hope. In South Africa it is now wholly extinct. 



THE STORY OF THE GIRAFFE. 



301 



In the opinion of modern naturalists, it holds a place by itself between the 
deer and antelopes; it forms, at all events, a. group to which no other animals 
belong. The height of the giraffe varies from thirteen to eighteen feet. Its 
beautiful long neck enables it to browse on the leaves of the trees on which 
it feeds. It is very dainty while feeding, and plucks the leaves one by one 
with its long, flexible tongue. The females are of lower stature, and more 
delicately formed than the males. 

The movements of the giraffe are very peculiar, the limbs of each side 




GIRAFFES OF THE KALAHARI DESERT. 



appearing to act together. It is very swift, and can outrun a horse, especially 
if it can get among broken ground and rocks, over which it leaps with a 
succession of frog-like hops. 

The senses of both sight and hearing- are highly developed; and the lofty 
position of the head gives to* the soft and liquid eyes a wide field of view. 
The" animal's only means of defense is by kicking out with its legs; and the 
blows thus delivered are of terrific force and power. This mode of attack is 



302 THE STORY OF THE GIRAFFE. 

employed by the cow in defending her young, and likewise in the contests 
which take place among the males during the pairing season. 

Some writers have discovered ugliness and a want of grace in the giraffe, 
but I consider that he is one of the most strikingly beautiful animals in the 
creation; and when a herd is seen scattered through a grove of the pic- 
turesque parasol-topped acacias which adorn their native plains, and on 
whose uppermost shoots they are enabled to browse through the colossal 
height with which nature has so' admirably endowed them, he must indeed 
be slow of conception who fails to discover both grace and dignity in all 
their movements. 

As in the case of most wild animals, the surroundings of the giraffe are 
a protection to him. Among the great South African forests, where innum- 
erable blasted and weather-beaten trunks and stems occur, I have repeatedly 
been in doubt as to the presence of a troop, until I had recourse to my field 
glass, and I have known even the practiced eye of the natives deceived, at 
one time mistaking these trunks for giraffes, and again confounding real 
giraffes with these aged veterans of the forest. The dappled hide of the 
giraffe blends harmoniously with the splashes of light and shade formed by 
the sun glinting through the foliage of the trees beneath which the animals 
take their stand, and thus intensifies the illusion. 

Giraffes range in herds of sixteen to one hundred. They are hunted 
principally for their hides, which are worth from twenty-five to forty dollars 
each. 

I never shot one of these harmless, beautiful creatures, although I have 
had many opportunities. 



THE AFRICAN LEOPARD 

Colonel Roosevelt Bags a Leopard— Captures Cubs Alive — Kermit's Good Luck ; He Kills 
a Leopard at a Distance of Twelve Feet — Facts About This Bloodthirsty Feline. 



While hunting buffaloes and lions on the Kapiti Plains Colonel Roosevelt 
incidentally came across and killed a leopard. The cubs were captured alive. 

While much smaller than the lion the leopard is generally conceded to be 
the most dangerous and most formidable beast of psey in East Africa. It is 
more blood-thirsty, ferocious, cunning and destructive than the lion. It is 
stealthy, tricky and truculent. The cry of the leopard is a hoarse grunt, some- 
times also sounding like a snarl. Its food consists of any mammals it can 
overpower. Its favorite diet is monkeys, smaller antelopes, gazelles, and, in 
mountainous districts, also wart-hogs. It hunts its prey preferably at night 
when the antelopes visit their drinking places and the monkeys sleep on steep 
rocks and in trees. The unceasing bleating of antelopes and the intense shriek- 
ing of monkeys always indicate that their enemy is attacking them. The big 
baboons, however, are well able to offer a stout resistance, for their weapons 
are sharp and larger than those of the leopard. 

A couple of weeks later Kermit and Mr. McMillan were -out beating for 
game on the Juja farm, the latter's magnificent ranch on the Athi river, where 
the Roosevelt party stopped for several weeks while hunting in the vicinity, 
and suddenly came on the spoor of a leopard in a dry watercourse surrounded 
by dense jungles. The young sportsman had an exciting encounter with the 
ferocious beast, which came near killing one of his beaters and threatened his 
own life. Driven out by the beaters from the thicket, where it was in hiding, 
the furious beast, with a lightning-like rapidity, which defies description, came 
running towards the hunters and charged Kermit, who was only a few paces 
from the jungle. He pulled the trigger just in the nick of time, for had the 
mortal bullet hit the beast a second later it would already have buried its claws 
in his flesh. The animal was a small female weighing only forty-five pounds, 
while large ones often weigh a hundred pounds more. Its spotted fur, which 
was carefully prepared by Prof. Heller, is one of the young sportsman's most 
valued trophies from his East African hunt. 

An adventure with a leopard, which occurred in this neighborhood a short 
time ago, is told by a famous African hunter. Returning towards evening 
to his camp, his attention was drawn to a tree on which a crowd of baboons 
were shrieking with all their might. Since monkeys are preyed on by the 

303 



304 THE AFRICAN LEOPARD. 

leopard, he concluded that the baboons were directing their wrath-" against 
one of the stealthy cats in a near-by thicket. He penetrated a few feet 
into the jungle, when something ahead of him began to move., while the 
monkeys followed it in the top of the trees. The thicket grew less dense, 
and he soon found himself on the edge of a ravine, when he saw, about 
ninety feet ahead of him, a strong leopard dragging along a half-grown 
baboon. He raised his rifle, but before he could fire the beast had dropped 
the monkey and escaped with a mighty leap into the ravine. 

The leap of the, leopard is so swift that it is very hard to hit him when 
charging or fleeing. It surely is better for the hunter to let the beast go than 
merely to wound it. A wounded leopard is a most dangerous enemy when it 
turns and charges the hunter ; its movement, quick as lightning, hardly allows 
one to take aim. Young Kermit, therefore, fully deserved the praise Mr. Mc- 
Millan and the proud father bestowed upon him for his quick action and 
presence of mind in his first thrilling adventure with so formidable a foe. 

Another African hunter recounts the following hair-breadth escape from 
the bloody fangs of a leopard. "On one occasion," he says, "my foolhardi- 
ness brought me within an inch of losing my life. I noticed in the sand of 
the steppe the tracks of a leopard dragging its prey. They led me to the high 
bank of the ravine washed out by rain. I went all around it and found 
that the animal had not left it. Soon I made out the leopard lying with its 
prey, a small antelope, in a hole under the roots of a tree. But the beast had 
noticed me also. Leaving its -prey behind, the leopard tried to steal away; 
at the same moment I fired. A trail of blood proved that I had hit the ani- 
mal but not killed it. Going along the high and steep embankment, I noticed 
the beast cowering, half hidden by the roots of a tree. The distance between 
us was about seventy-five feet. What happened now was enacted much more 
quickly than it takes time to describe it.' 

"At the same moment that I raised my rifle to fire a telling shot, the leo- 
pard leaped towards me quick as a flash of lightning. I saw the beast claw- 
ing the edge of the ravine and almost touching my feet, and felt that there 
was no escape possible, and no defense either, when the leopard jumped back 
into the ravine as quickly as it had attacked me. The sight of my two native 
companions, who put in an appearance near me just at that moment, appar- 
ently had scared the animal as much as its sudden sight staggered my men. 
Although I did not lose my presence of mind, I did not have time enough 
to raise my rifle and to shoot ; it all happened in a few seconds. A few min- 
utes later a well-aimed shot freed us of all further danger. 



THE AFRICAN LEOPARD. 305 

"Never shall I forget this experience; I can even now hear the short 
snarls of the infuriated beast. I was saved through no skill or bravery of 
mine, but by mere luck." 

The leopard has no decided preference for any special locality; its haunts 
may be found anywhere, on rocky ground as well as in wooded districts — 
in fact, whenever it finds sufficient cover. It easily climbs trees, and often 
hides during a hot day in their shady tops. Men have been jumped at and 
killed by beasts concealed in the foliage, and the natives claim that the leo- 
pard is a man-eater. Old male leopards may become man-eaters when they 
have discovered how easy it is to secure human victims, but leopards gen- 
erally do not indulge in stealing and eating human beings. Occasionally, 
however, they do attack them, chiefly women and children. 

The cunning leopard roves in untold numbers nightly over the vast velts 
of East Africa, and will do so long after the strong lion has ceased to exist. 
The variety known as the cheetah or hunting-leopard is a more rare animal, 
and is sometimes tamed and kept as a dog around the homestead. 

The following interesting facts about the leopard will, no doubt, be ap- 
preciated by our readers : 

Some years ago a couple of leopards, which lived in England, afforded 
a strong proof of the innate individuality of these animals. One of them, 
a male, was always sulky and unamiable, and never would respond to offered 
kindnesses. The female, on the contrary, was most docile and affectionate, 
eagerly seeking for the kind words and caresses of her keeper. She was 
extremely playful, as is the wont of most leopards, and was in the habit 
of indulging in an amusement which is generally supposed to be the specialty 
of the monkey tribe. Nothing pleased her so well as to lay her claws on 
some article of dress belonging to her visitors, to drag it through the 
bars of her cage, and to tear it in pieces. Scarcely a day passed that this 
amusingly mischievous animal did not entirely destroy a hat, bonnet or 
parasol, or perhaps protrude a rapid paw and claw off a large piece of a 
lady's dress. 

The cubs of the leopard are pretty, graceful little creatures, with short 
pointed tails, and spots of a fainter tint than those of the adult animal. 
Their number is from one to five. Even in captivity the leopard is a most 
playful animal, especially if in the society of companions of its own race. 

The beautiful spotted creatures sport with each other just like so many 
kittens, making, with their wild, graceful springs, sudden attacks upon one 
companion, or escaping from the assaults of another, rolling over on their 



306 



THE STORY OF THE LEOPARD. 



backs, and striking playfully at each other, and every now and then uniting 
in a general skirmishing chase over their limited domains. Even when they 
are caged together with lions and tigers, their playfulness does not desert 
them, and they treat their enormous companions with amusing coolness. 

The third in point of size of the Old World cats is the leopard, or 
panther, a species closely allied to the lion and tiger, from whom it is at 
once distinguished by its color marks and inferior dimensions. Two species 
of large spotted cats are recognized as inhabiting Africa and India, to 




LEOPARDS IN THE JUNGLE. 



the smaller of which the name leopard is restricted, while the larger is 
known as the panther. Although there is an enormous amount of differ- 
ence between the smallest and the largest of such spotted cats in point of 
size, yet I find that the change from the one to the other is so gradual 
and complete that, in a large series of specimens, it is quite impossible to 
say where leopards end and panthers begin. Hence it appears to me that 
there is but a single species, for which the name leopard should be adopted. 
The spotted coat of the leopard being its most distinctive feature, the 



THE STORY OF THE LEOPARD. 307 

animal (in common with the hunting-leopard) is known to the natives of 
India as the chita, meaning spotted; the leopard, on account of its larger 
size, being often distinguished as the chita-bagh, or spotted tiger. I have 
made a careful study of the two animals, and have concluded that they are 
of the same species. They are as close kin as are the Jersey and Shorthorn 
or Durham cows. 

The differences in the size of individual leopards is so great that while 




A PERSIAN LEOPARD AND ITS HABITS. 



in the smallest examples the total length of the head, body and tail does not 
exceed five feet, in the largest it reaches to as much as eight feet. In a large 
male, of which the total length was seven feet eleven inches, the head and 
body measured four feet nine inches, and the tail three feet two inches. 

The leopard is one of the three larger cats which are common to India 
and Africa, the other two' being the lion and the hunting-leopard. The 
distribution of the leopard is, however, more extensive than that of the 
lion, embracing nearly the whole of Asia, from Persia to Japan, but not 
extending as far north as. Siberia. 



308 THE STORY OF THE LEOPARD. 

Next to the tiger in India, and to the lion in Africa, the leopard is the 
most formidable flesh-eating animal to be found in either country. In its 
habits it differs essentially from both the lion and the tiger in that it is 
thoroughly at home in trees, running up a straight-stemmed and smooth- 
barked trunk with the speed and agility of a monkey. Moreover, the leop- 
ard is a much more active animal than the tiger, frequently taking tremen- 
dous leaps and springs. The Indian leopard, although its powers of offense 
are far inferior to those of the tiger, is in some respects a more dangerous 
animal, as it is roused with less provocation, and is more •courageous in 
attacking those who disturb its repose. The favorite resorts of the Indian 
leopard are rocky hills covered with scrub, among which it seeks secure 
hiding in caves and under overhanging masses of rock. From strongholds 
such as these the leopard in Southern and Central India watch the sur- 
rounding country towards sunset, and descend with astonishing celerity and 
stealth, under cover of the rocks, to cut off any straggling animal among 
the herds or flocks on their return to .the village at nightfall. From their 
habit of lurking in the vicinity of the habitations of man, to prey upon cattle, 
ponies, donkeys, sheep, goats, and dogs, leopards are frequently brought 
into collision with Indian villagers; and a leopard being mobbed in a garden, 
or field of sugar-cane or standing corn, from which he will charge several 
times, and bite and claw half a dozen before he is despatched or makes his 
escape, is no uncommon occurrence in India, 

This partiality of the leopard for dogs seems to* be characteristic of the 
animal from one end of India to the other, and there are many instances on 
record where leopards in the hill-stations have swooped down in broad day- 
light and carried off pet dogs from before the very eyes of their European 
masters or mistresses. It is but rarely that leopards take to man-eating, but 
instances do occur, one of which came under my notice some years ago, 
when a leopard carried off a considerable number of persons from a village in 
Kashmir. In Africa the general habits of the leopard appear to be very 
much the same as in India, Sir Samuel Baker relating how, on one occasion, 
a dog was carried off from the very middle of his camp by one of these 
marauders. 

The leopard has often been tamed, and, indeed, almost domesticated, 
being permitted to range the house at will, greatly to the consternation of 
strange visitors. This complete state of docility can, however, only take 
place in an animal which has either been born in captivity, or taken at so 
early an age that its savage propensities have never had time to expand. 



THE STORY OF THE LEOPARD. 



309 



Even in this case the disposition of the creature must be naturally good, or 
it remains proof against kindness and attention, never losing a surliness of 
temper that makes its liberation too perilous an experiment. The very same 
treatment by the same people will have a marvelously different effect on two 
different animals, though they be of the same species, or even the offspring" 
of the same parents. 

The snow-leopard inhabits the elevated regions of Central Asia. In 
Ladak it does not descend below the level of some nine thousand feet above 




A PAIR OF CHITAS OR HUNTING LEOPARDS. 



the sea-level in winter, while in summer it ranges to a height of eighteen 
thousand feet and upwards. Its long and thick fur is specially adapted to 
protect the animal against the severe winter cold of the regions it inhabits. 
The beauty of the fur of a snow-leopard killed during the winter is unri- 
valed. The animal is probably found all over Thibet, but how far to the 
westward of Gilgit it extends is at present unknown. It has, indeed, been 
reported from Persia, and Armenia. 

Our knowledge of the habits of the snow-leopard is at present but lim- 
ited, since comparatively few have seen the animal in its wild state. From 



310 



THE STORY OF THE LEOPARD. 



living in a practically treeless country, it is probable that it is unable to 
climb. It preys chiefly upon wild sheep, and goats, and marmots, and other 
rodents; it wages war upon domestic sheep and goats when grazing upon 
the higher grounds; and it will likewise, it is said, occasionally attack 
ponies. It is reported never to molest man. 

The hunting-leopard is another representative of the cat family, and dif- 
fers so markedly in certain respects from all the others that it is now gen- 




A YOUNG HUNTING LEOPARD. 



erally admitted to rank as a distinct breed. It is generally known to Euro- 
peans as the chita. 

The hunting-leopard is distinguished by the slenderness of its body, and 
the great relative strength of its limbs, which are longer than in any of the 
true cats, not even excepting the lynxes. In length of body it may be com- 
pared with the true leopard, although it stands much higher on the legs. 



THE CROCODILE 

East African Rivers Full of Crocodiles — Hated by the Natives — How the Crocodile is 
Hunted and Trapped — The Alligator. 



While stopping at the Juja ranch with his American friend, Mr. Mc- 
Millan, Colonel Roosevelt had many chances to see the so much dreaded and 
detested crocodiles, for the nearby Athi river was full of them, as are in- 
deed all East African rivers and lakes. They would often suddenly plunge 
in the river when surprised by the hunters or lie floating on the water or 
on the sandy shores basking in the scorching sunshine. 

The hard and scaly covering of the crocodile makes him proof against 
ordinary rifle bullets, and the shot which tells best on him is the one which 
hits its head just where the vertebral column begins; it kills instantly. 

The crocodile does not seriously interfere with the peaceful progress of 
civilization in Africa. Its home is the big rivers and the large lakes and it 
very seldom ventures on an expedition on dry land in search of its prey. Once 
in awhile it happens upon a native child playing near the river and then no 
escape is possible. It is hunted exclusively on account of its valuable hide, 
which is used for making trunks and handbags. 

As a pastime during the evenings, says an African traveler who recently 
has covered the same hunting grounds as Mr. Roosevelt, my men and I 
fished for crocodiles with line and hook. I had connected an island with the 
right bank of the river by means of trees cut down on the island and the 
banks. The trunks of enormous trees and their intertwined tops formed a 
kind of river-bar, above and below which gathered numerous reptiles. I had 
some shark-hooks with me. I baited them with large pieces of meat. When- 
ever I had a bite from an animal, I gave it a long line, about one hundred 
and fifty feet of thin, strong rope. Then ten or twelve of my men pulled 
for all they were worth and dragged the crocodile — often weighing a thou- 
sand pounds — to the bank. While the saurian was beating the water with 
its awful tail, I killed it with a shot aimed at a spot just behind the head. 
The dying animal emitted a sickening smell of musk. I often caught six 
or more crocodiles in one night. We had to be very careful to keep out of 
reach of the flexible and powerful tail of the animal. One of my men was 
particularly eager to catch the hated "mamba" — he had once had a narrow 
escape from a reptile and had sworn to take revenge on the whole brood. In 
fact, many natives are maimed by crocodiles, and this huge reptile will not 

311 



312 THE CROCODILE. 

disdain to prey on human beings, as travelers often have had occasion to 
observe. A sportsman and naturalist with his caravan was recently on his 
way back to the Coast after a successful expedition in British East Africa, 
when one of his blacks, who had drunk too freely of the sweet palm-wine, fell 
from the small bridge leading across a river. The current carried him off 
before they could go to his aid and save him from the jaws of a crocodile, 
which in a moment had dragged him down. 

An inexperienced observer may easily be deceived as to the number of 
crocodiles in a river. They swim along below the surface almost completely 
hidden from sight, only from time to time they raise their nostrils above 
the water. When they lie on sand-banks or on the river-shore or on over- 
hanging branches of trees, they disappear as quick as lightning into the 
water at the slightest sign of danger. They are least shy in the great lakes. 
Many of them are found in the bogs and inlets of the Victoria Nyanza 
living rather amicably with the river-hogs and the native fishermen. It 
appears to the traveler like a picture of paradise to see the reed floats of 
the natives moving about on the waters peopled by hundreds of reptiles, 
river-hogs, and birds of all kinds. 

It certainly was a picturesque sight that met the eyes of our ex-President 
when he crossed this beautiful lake among all these marvelous representatives 
of the animal kingdom of the tropics. In the middle of December the 
American hunting and scientific expedition crossed the Victoria Nyanza on 
board the steamer Clement Hill bound for Entebbe, the seat of the English 
governor of Uganda. 

The voyage was a delightful one and the steamer flew the United States 
flag. It was the first time that the stars and stripes had flown over a passen- 
ger vessel on the Victoria Nyanza. The Colonel expressed himself sur- 
prised at the beauty of the lake and the comfort provided for the steamer's 
passengers. Our illustration shows the only outlet of beautiful Victoria 
Nyanza, the headwaters of the Nile, the source of Egypt's life and fertility, 
which right from under the Equator darts on its course of thousands of 
miles through ravines, swamps and desert to quench the thirst of millions of 
people and beasts of the wilds. 

The crossing of the Victoria Nyanza marks the second stage of the 
journey in the interior of Africa. With the passage of the lake the Colonel 
left behind him British East Africa and entered the Uganda protectorate, 
the wildest and most beautiful, perhaps the most dangerous, and certainly 
the most interesting field of his explorations. 



314 THE CROCODILE. 

In Entebbe they were met at the pier by government officials, who were 
introduced to the Americans by Chief Secretary Russell. A guard of honor 
for the visitors was made up of Indian scheiks. 

Colonel Roosevelt and Kermit entered a motor car and were driven to 
the government house, where they were entertained by the governor of 
Uganda. The Colonel said that his trip from Nairobi had been a pleasant 
one. At Juja the members of the American mission had gathered at the 
station and welcomed their countrymen. Another demonstration had taken 
place at Nakuro, where the settlers cheered during the brief stop of the train. 

From Entebbe Colonel Roosevelt and Kermit proceeded by motor car 
along the splendid sandstone road, built by the English, to Kampala, the 
native capital of Uganda, at the head of the lake, where they rejoined the 
others of the party, who in the meantime had arrived by steamer in the 
best of health and spirits and ready to set forth in search of new conquests. 

But we return to the crocodile. 

I shall treat of the crocodile and alligator in the same chapter, since the 
habits and general characteristics of one are in great measure similar to the 
ether. During my various journeys it has been my unhappy lot to see eight 
human beings killed, besides a score mangled by these ferocious creatures. 
I would sooner attack a lion single-handed than be placed in proximity to 
one of these man-eating reptiles. The blood-curdling scenes which I have 
witnessed are still fresh in my memory, and I cannot shake off the feeling of 
horror they frequently bring to me. These creatures have rightfully been 
termed the lion and tiger of the reptile world. 

The crocodile is an inhabitant of the old world, the alligator of the new, 
and the two animals are best distinguished by the construction of the jaws. 
In the crocodiles the lower canine teeth fit into a notch in the edge of the 
upper jaw, and there is in consequence a contraction of the muzzle just 
behind the nostrils. The lower canine teeth of the alligators fit into a pit 
in the edge of the upper jaw, and in consequence no contraction is needed. 
At the back of the throat is a valve completely shutting out water, but leav- 
ing the passage to the nostrils free, so that the crocodile can keep his mouth 
open when beneath the surface, without swallowing the water, or can hold 
his prey to drown under the water, while he breathes at ease with his nostrils 
at the surface. There is no true tongue. 

The common crocodile inhabits many African rivers, and is, probably, 
the reptile infesting the Ganges. The Nile, however, is the best known 
haunt for this terrible creature. 




From photograph. THREE CROCODILES CAPTURED IN THE ATHI RIVER. 



315 



316 THE STORY OF THE CROCODILE. 

The crocodile feeds on fish, floating carrion, and dogs, or other ariimals, 
which it is enabled to surprise as they come to drink at the water's edge, 
but man frequently falls a victim to its voracity. In revenge for this treat- 
ment, all nations persecuted with this pest have devised various methods of 
killing it. The negroes of some parts of Africa are sufficiently bold and skillful 
to attack the crocodile in his own element. They fearlessly plunge into the 
water, and diving beneath the crocodile, plunge the dagger with which they 
are armed into the creature's belly, which is not protected by the coat of 
mail that guards the other parts of its body. The usual plan is to lie in 
wait near the spot where the crocodile is accustomed to repose. This is 
usually a sand-bank, and the hunter digs a hole in the sand, and, armed 
with a sharp harpoon, patiently awaits the coming of his expected prey. 
The crocodile comes to its accustomed spot, and is soon asleep, when it is 
suddenly roused by the harpoon, which penetrates completely through its 
scaly covering. The hunter immediately retreats to a canoe, and hauls at 
the line attached to the harpoon until he drags the crocodile to the surface, 
when he darts a second harpoon. The struggling animal is soon wearied 
out, dragged to shore, and dispatched by dividing the spinal cord. In order 
to prevent the infuriated reptile from biting the cord asunder, it is com- 
posed of about thirty small lines, not twisted, but only bound together at 
intervals of two feet. 

When on land it is not difficult to escape the crocodile, as certain pro- 
jections on the vertebrae of the neck prevent it from turning its head to 
any great extent. 

Human beings have a great dread of this terrible reptile. Many instances 
are known where men have been surprised near the water's edge, or cap- 
tured when they have fallen into the river. There is only one way of escape 
from the jaws of the crocodile, and that is to turn boldly upon the scaly foe, 
and press the thumbs into his eyes, so as to force him to relax his hold, or 
relinquish the pursuit. 

The Shire River in Africa is very much infested with crocodiles, which at 
times become very ferocious in their attacks upon the unhappy natives who 
venture near the banks. This more particularly happens when there is a 
scarcity of fish in the river, which is the case at flood time, when the fish are 
driven from their usual haunts. Then it is not safe for any of the natives 
to show themselves, and to bathe is to court destruction. 

I once saw a complete mob of immense crocodiles after one man, who 
had ventured to bathe, and, of course, for the last time. The reptile which 



THE STORY OP THE CROCODILE. 



317 



had secured the unfortunate victim was in his turn attacked by hungry 
crocodiles, and a fierce fight resulted. 

One native, who was smoking at the side of the river, was seized by the 
hand by a crocodile, and would have been dragged in and devoured had he 
not very quickly caught hold of a tree which grew upon the bank, and clung 
with such tenacity that the reptile had to abandon his captive, leaving the 
deep dent of his jaws on his arm. 

In the Upper Nile the favorite haunts of the crocodiles are sandbanks, 
situated in parts of the river where the current is not too strong. There 
they may be seen at all hours of the day sleeping with widely opened mouths, 
in and out of which the black-backed plover walks with the utmost uncon- 




GANGES CROCODILE DEVOURING A CHILD. 



cern. According to Arab accounts, one and the same crocodile. has been 
known to haunt a single sandbank throughout the term of a man's life; 
thus leading to the conclusion that these creatures must enjoy a long term 
of existence, during the whole of which they continue, like other reptiles, 
to increase in size. In common with this feature of uninterrupted growth, 
all crocodiles are also distinguished by their remarkable tenacity of life; the 
shots that prove instantaneously fatal being those that take effect either in 
the brain itself or in the spinal cord of the neck. It is true, indeed, that a shot 
through the shoulder will ultimately cause death; but it allows time for 
the animal to escape into the water, where its body immediately sinks. To 



318 THE STORY OF THE CROCODILE. 

reach the brain, the crocodile should be struck immediately behind the aper- 
ture of the ear. Although it is commonly supposed that the bony armor 
of these reptiles is bullet-proof, this is quite erroneous; if the plates are 
struck obliquely, the bullet will, however, frequently ricochet. 

A remarkable instance of boldness and ferocity displayed by a crocodile 
of this species was witnessed by me during a journey to Mashonaland. On 
arriving one evening at the banks of the narrow but rocky Tokwi River, a 
man named Williams rode in with the intention of crossing. During the 
passage his horse was carried by the stream a few yards below the landing- 
place, and just as he reached the opposite bank he was seized by the leg by 
a crocodile, which dragged him from his horse into the stream. There the 
reptile let go its hold, upon which the man managed to crawl on to a small 
island. Immediately his companion rode in to his assistance, upon which 
another very large crocodile mounted up between him and his horse's neck, 
and then slipped back, making a dreadful wound on his side and in the 
horse's neck with its claws as it did so. The river seemed, indeed, to be 
absolutely swarming with crocodiles; and it was with the greatest difficulty 
that the unfortunate man, Williams, who ultimately died of his wounds, was 
brought to bank. 

The Ganges crocodile is one of the largest, if not the very largest, of 
its order, sometimes reaching a length of 35 feet. As its popular name 
imports, it is a native of India, and swarms in many of the Indian rivers, the 
Ganges being greatly infested with its presence. It is a striking animal, the 
extraordinary length of its muzzle giving it a most singular and rather gro- 
tesque aspect. 

This prolongation of the head varies considerably according to the age 
and sex of the individual. In the young, just hatched from the egg, the 
head is short and blunt, and only attains its full development when the 
creature has reached adult age. The males can be distinguished from the 
other sex by the shape of the muzzle, which is much smaller at the extremity. 
There are many teeth, the full complement being about one hundred and 
twenty. They are similar in appearance, and about equal in length. 

The following account of the pursuit of one of these monsters which had 
recently carried off a boy is abridged from a native newspaper. The hunter, 
having been summoned, moored his canoe hard by the place where the 
tragedy had taken place, it being well known that a crocodile which has 
been successful in securing a victim will generally remain for some days about 
the spot. Soon the crocodile was descried floating on the water, whereupon 



THE STORY OF THE CROCODILE. 



319 



the hunter and assistant hid themselves in the canoe, while the. son of the 
former entered the water, which he commenced to beat with his hands. 
Catching sight of the boy, the crocodile prepared to dive towards him, upon 
which the boy took refuge in the canoe. In a moment or so the reptile rose 
to the surface at the expected spot, where he was saluted with a couple of 
harpoons, one of which secured a firm hold. After a long chase, in which a 
number of the inhabitants of the village took part in boats, a second harpoon 
was safely planted in the head of the monster, who was finally dragged to 
shore. When opened several gold and silver ornarnents— the relics of earlier 
victims — were found in his stomach. 




ALLIGATOR WAITING FOR SOMETHING TO TURN UP. 

On the Amazon and Orinoco, as well as other South American rivers, 
alligators are to be met with in myriads, and appear to be very similar in 
their habits to the crocodiles of the old world. They grow to a length of 
eighteen or twenty feet, and attain an enormous bulk. Like the turtles, the 
alligator has its annual migrations, for it retreats to the interior pools and 
flooded forests in the dry season. During the months of high water, there- 
fore, scarcely a single individual is to be seen in the main river. In the mid- 
dle part of the Lower Amazon, where many of the lakes with their channels 



320 THE STORY OF THE CROCODILE. 

of communication with the trunk stream dry up in the fine months, the 
alligator buries itself in the mud and becomes dormant, sleeping till the rainy 
season returns. On the Upper Amazon, where the dry season is never 
excessive, it has not this habit. It is scarcely exaggerating to say that the 
waters of the Solimoens are as well stocked with large alligators as a ditch in 
Indiana is in summer with tadpoles. By the natives of these regions the alli- 
gator is at once despised and feared. On one occasion I saw a party boldly 
enter the water and pull to shore one of these large reptiles by its tail; while 
at another time two medium-sized specimens that had been captured in a 
net were coolly returned to the water hard by where a couple of children 
were playing. Sometimes, however, they have to pay dearly for such temer- 
ity. The Indians of Guiana capture the alligator by means of a baited hook 
and line, the former being composed of several pieces of wood, which become 
fixed in the creature's jaws. 

One of the most remarkable things on the Magdalena River is the num- 
ber of alligators. Their skins, teeth, and bodies even, might, it would seem, 
be made a source of profit. When the sun is at the zenith, and the denizens 
of the forest in silence seek the deepest shade — when no song, no noise is 
heard — the alligator stretches its monstrous length on the sands, and amuses 
itself by swallowing the swarms of flies. Then a negro, with his lounging 
gait, will seek the water to bathe. The alligator marks him. Slowly, clum- 
sily, he moves his uncouth form, and, plowing through the sand, seeks his 
favorite element to secure his prey. If the negro is unarmed, he eludes pur- 
suit; but if he has kept his keen knife, he awaits his foe. The alligator makes 
a dash at him. The negro dives, turns and comes up where the alligator 
started. This maneuver repeated over and over wearies the monster; and 
the negro prepares for the attack. But where strike this creature, whose 
scales return a rifle-ball? After a series of movements to disconcert the alli- 
gator, he remains quiet. Again the alligator rushes at him. The negro dives 
so as to let the creature pass over his head, and rising, drives his knife under 
the shoulder, straight to the heart. But he fights on, and, though the water 
is reddened with blood, he beats savagely till repeated blows complete the 
work, and the negro swims ashore, leaving the tide to bear away his trophy. 

When the alligator is cebado — that is, in the habit of lurking around a 
hut, the negro resorts to a novel plan. It requires cool energy. He takes 
a piece of hard wood, about eighteen inches long, and three or four inches 
thick, well sharpened, with a sort of shoulder where it begins to taper. 
When he sees the animal at its post, he crawls slowly up to him, and, resting 



THE STORY OF THE CROCODILE. 321 

on his knee and left hand, holds out as a bait his right hand, which grasps 
the double-pointed stick. The alligator opens its jaws and shuts them vio- 
lently on the hand; but finding itself caught, makes in all haste for the river. 
The negro holds on till the alligator, unable to close its mouth, drowns. 

On our voyage up the Amazon we halted, from time to time, when we 
came in sight of a good place for fishing. It was generally the mouth of 
some branch, or one of the numerous shallows. We had no difficulty in 
finding the spot, no need even to ask a native. The flocks of snowy herons, 
ranged like sentries, or the abundance of long 'alligators about the spot, 
announced not only this fact, but the intention of their presence there. 

It was curious to watch their proceedings. An Indian, stripping off his 
bark shirt, creeps slowly through the shallow water toward an alligator with 
a sling in his left hand and in his right a pole, with a slip-noose at the end 
of a stout rawhide. Though the alligator sees him coming, it will not 
attempt either to attack or fly; it lies lazily there, looking steadily with its 
protruding eyes at the bold hunter, occasionally giving a lazy movement 
with its powerful tail. It does not seem to notice the noose when actually 
before its eyes. 

The hunter suddenly throws it over the monster's head, and draws it 
taut with a steady jerk. Then the other Indians, who have been watching, 
rush on, and with a long, strong pull they all land the creature, struggling 
to get back, and lashing sand and water with its powerful tail. A few vigor- 
ous blows of an ax on the head and tail soon disable it. 

It is rather curious that the alligator never seems to rush on its antago- 
nists. A single movement in that direction would scatter them all in a 
moment. They would drop pole and loop and ax, and run for dear life. The 
Indians are so expert that accidents from the tail are rare. 

They like the flesh, but they begin by cutting out from under the jaws 
and belly, near the tail, four musk-glands, in pairs, which if left, diffuse their 
flavor through the whole body. These glands are a valuable article of com- 
merce; and the Indians tie them up carefully and dry them in the sun. 
Mixed with a little rose-water, the contents of these glands perfume the raven 
locks of elegant Bolivian ladies at Santa Cruz de la Sierra and Cochabamba, 
whose nose can stand and enjoy its powerful odor as they do a bull-fight, 
but who, gracefully as they roll cigaritos and dance their favorite dances, 
often cannot write their names. 




THE STORY OF THE CIVET. 



In parts of India, Africa and the Malay Peninsula I have oftentimes had 
my patience taxed by the conduct of my dogs in leaving the trail they were 
following to pursue the trail of a civet. The reason why a dog will follow 
the trail of a civet in preference to any other is that the civet has a scent 
gland and leaves a highly perfumed trail. In this respect it is like the fox — 
only more so. 

From this scent gland is extracted the perfume which bears the name of 
the animal, and which was more highly esteemed a hundred or more years 
ago than it is now. 

Civets have longer faces than domestic cats, and their bodies are also 
longer, but their legs shorter than in the members of that family. The tail 
is usually marked with six black rings, which are much wider than the inter- 
vening white ones; its tip being black. The Indian civet inhabits the eastern 
side of India, from Bengal to Sikhim, ascending in the last-named district to 
a considerable elevation in the Himalaya, and it is also found in Burma, in 
Siam, in Hainan, and in the south of China. This civet is generally a solitary 
animal, and it hides in woods, bushes, or thick grass during the day, wander- 
ing into open country and often coming about houses at night. Not infre- 
quently it is found in holes, but whether these are dug by it is doubtful. It 

322 



THE STORY OF THE CIVET. 



323 



is very destructive, killing any birds or small animals it can capture, and 
often attacking fowls, ducks, etc., but also feeding on snakes, frogs, insects, 
eggs, and on fruits and some roots. Civets take readily to water. 

The palm-civets are only abroad at night and live almost entirely in trees. 
Their food is in part animal and part vegetable substances. 

Of the various families of true palm-civets, five are found in India and 
Burma. In eight of these the tail is considerably more than half the length 
of the head and body; and in seven of these it is uniformly-colored. The 
Celebes palm-civet, forming the eighth of this series, is, however, distin- 
guished by having its tail. banded with indistinct rings of darker and lighter 
brown. The imperfectly-known woolly palm-civet of Thibet differs from 




AN AFRICAN AND AN INDIAN CIVET. 



all the rest in the woolly nature of its fur, and also by the length of the tail 
not exceeding that of the head and body. 

The best known of all is the Indian palm-civet, found throughout the 
greater part of India and Ceylon. The general color of the coarse and some- 
what ragged fur is a blackish or brownish-gray, without any stripes across 
the back in fully adult individuals. The length of the head and body of a 
male measured by me was twenty-two and one-half inches, and that of the 
tail nineteen and one-half inches; the corresponding dimensions of a female 
being in one instance twenty and seventeen and one-half inches, while in a 
second both were about eighteen inches. 

This species lives much on trees, especially on the cocoanut palms, and 



324 



THE STORY OF THE CIVET. 



is often found to have taken up its residence in the thick thatched roofs of 
native houses. I found a large colony of them established in the rafters of 
my own house at Calcutta. It is also occasionally found in dry drains, out- 
houses and other places of shelter. It issues forth at dark, living by prefer- 




AN AFRICAN CIVET. 



ence on animal food, rats, lizards, small birds, poultry, and eggs; but it also 
freely partakes of vegetable food, fruit, and insects. In confinement it will 
also eat plantains, boiled rice, bread-and-milk, etc. It is very fond of cock- 
roaches. Now and then it will commit depredations on some poultry-yard, 



THE STORY OF THE CIVET. 325 

and I have often known it taken in traps baited with a pigeon or a chicken. 
In the south of India it is very often tamed, and becomes quite domestic, and 
even affectionate in its manners. 

One I saw went about quite at large, and late every night used to work 
itself under the pillow of its owner, roll itself up into a ball, with its tail coiled 
round its body, and sleep till a late hour in the day. It hunted for rats, 
shrews, and lizards. Their activity in climbing is very great, and they used 
to ascend and descend my house at one of the^ corners in a most surprising 
manner. This palm-civet is common in Lower Bengal, and in the gardens of 
the suburban residences of Calcutta may occasionally be seen in the late after- 
noon or evening crawling among the leaves of a palm previous to starting on 
its nocturnal wanderings. That it will sometimes take up its quarters in the 
very heart of the town of Calcutta is proved by an incident which happened 
to the present writer when employed on the Geological Survey of India. At 
that time the office of the survey was situated in a street leading down to the 
Hoogli River, in the old part of the city. On arriving at the office I found 
my papers on the writing-table marked every morning with the footorints of 
some mammal. I thereupon set a trap., which caught a large civet the follow- 
ing night. 




PHOTOGRAPHS OF ANTELOPES SECURED FOR MUSEUM. 
1 AND 2, MALE AND FEMALE WATERBUCKS. 3, ELAND. 4, HARTEBEEST. 

326 



HUNTING THE ANTELOPE 

Colonel Roosevelt Bags a Gnu, or Wildebeest, on Sir Alfred Pease's Estate — Excite- 
ment and Danger of the Hunt — His First Victim on African Soil — Facts About 
the Many Varieties of Antelope That Crowd the East African Velt. 



Riding on the cowcatcher along the Uganda Railroad Colonel Roosevelt 
almost seemed to be passing through a zoological garden, so numerous were 
the representatives of the East African fauna that could be seen from the 
train. Zebras, gazelles, giraffes, and water bucks were either quietly grazing 
on both sides of the track or crossing it only a few hundred yards ahead of 
the train. Agile monkeys were swinging in the branches of the giant trees 
that formed groves and copses here and there on the velt, and now and then 
a lightfooted antelope, scared by the steam whistle, would startle and rush 




From photo. 

NATIVE BEARERS CARRYING WATERBUCK TO CAMP, WHERE THEY WILL HAVE A GOOD FEAST. 

327 



328 



HUNTING THE ANTELOPE. 



from its resting-place under some shadowy sycamore, scampering over the 
plains almost as fast as the blackcrested ostriches. 

Conspicuous among this vast assembly of African beasts was a huge 
queer-looking ox or cow or horse* — or what ? — it was not easy to tell how to 
classify it, for it resembled all three and in addition had the head and mane 
of an American bison. The Colonel, however, was not slow to recognize in 
this unwieldy, shaggy beast the East African gnu or wildebeest and he was 
very anxious to> secure a good specimen for the National Museum. No 




PHOTOGRAPH OF AN ELAND BULL WHOSE SKIN WAS PREPARED FOR THE MUSEUM. 



sooner, therefore, had he pitched camp on Sir Alfred Pease's ranch, in the 
neighborhood of Kapiti station, than he set out in search of a herd of gnus. 
His efforts were not long in being crowned with success. A medium-sized herd 
was espied grazing on the velt. . Our Colonel selected a large bull for his 
target and succeeded, by stalking, in getting within shooting distance. But the 
bullet failed to secure the prey, and the big bull turned around, galloping 
away at a speed hardly to be expected in such a clumsy and heavy animal. 
Leaving it to Kermit to ride down the fleeing bull the Colonel at once selected 



HUNTING THE ANTELOPE. 



329 



a big fat cow for his target. But even now the bullet failed to take effect, 
and as he had left his "Tranquillity" behind it was a long while until he 
could overtake the wounded animal. Meanwhile Kermit had got the old 
bull and thus in a few hours two magnificent specimens were secured for the 
Smithsonian Institution. 

The hunting of the gnu is not entirely void of danger, for this beast has 
an ugly temper and when brought at bay will show fight. Like our domestic 
bull it has an irresistible aversion to scarlet, at the display o>f which color it 




AN ELAND PHOTOGRAPHED JUST BEFORE THE FINISHING SHOT. 

gets furious, and often makes a vicious charge when a red cloth is hoisted. 
It was owing to this peculiarity of the gnu that our former President a few 
days later secured another specimen of the same wary animal. All attempts 
to get within shooting distance had proved futile. The herd would scamper 
away on the approach of the hunters to stop at a few hundred yards' distance, 
inquisitively looking back to see if they were being pursued. This game had 
been repeated so long that our national hero lost his patience. Suddenly a 
red pocket handkerchief was seen floating above his head, and on came one 
of the old bulls in mad fury with mane erect and blazing eye, whisking its 
streaming tail, butting with its horns in a menacing manner, and displaying 
such a violent frenzy that the Colonel was fain to strike his colors and have 



330 



HUNTING THE ANTELOPE. 



recourse to his weapons. Crack ! A rifle shot resounded through the -air and 
down to the earth stumbled the infuriated beast only a few yards from the 
ex-President's feet, to be followed the next minute by another maddened bull, 
for which a second bullet was reserved. In less time than it takes to read this 




From photograph. 



WATERBUCK SHOT NEAR MACHAKOS. 



page two splendid specimens were secured for the National Museum and the 
Colonel smiled triumphantly to his native gun-bearers, who in many ways 
showed their admiration for his cold-blooded presence of mind and unprece- 
dented markmanship. 

As the Colonel and his companions were continuing their march they saw 
herds of hartebeests and other smaller varieties of the great antelope family 
which are so at home in these regions, but the almost total absence of trees 
and the desolate appearance of the parched velt, which owing to the dry sea- 
son was almost void of all vegetation, made stalking very difficult, and the 



STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 331 

shy denizens of the wilderness generally succeeded in getting away before 
our hunters could get within shooting distance. 

One of the most graceful antelopes is the waterbuck, which our former 
President hunted near Machakos. Our illustration shows one of these beauti- 
ful animals lying down in the grass. It is about the size of a two-year-old 
calf, its eyes are large and brilliant, its horns heavy, curved upwards and 
about three feet in length. The female is hornless and somewhat smaller, 
but has a mane around the neck like the male. Its flesh is so coarse that it is 
unfit to eat, and our American hunters, therefore, killed only the specimens 
needed for their collection. 

The antelope family has over seventy different varieties scattered all over 
the world, and we now proceed to make our readers acquainted with some 
of them and mainly those w T hich~the American hunting expedition met with 
in East Africa. 

No animal in a wild state appeals more strongly to my sympathy than 
the antelope. I have spent hours watching these timid, harmless, large-eyed 
creatures, of which there are about, seventy different species. The love of 
the mother doe for her fawn is SO' tender and gentle as to be almost human, 
and the absolute faith of the little creature in its mother is ideal. 

Although they are so timid and flee at the first approach of danger, there 
are times when certain species of antelope exhibit a high order of courage. 
I was once an eye witness to an act of bravery on the part of an antelope, 
a South African gemsbok, that was equal to that of any animal I know. We 
were stalking a lion in Cape Colony, when we saw the big beast suddenly 
crouch in a thicket of wait-a-bit thorns, his gaze intently fixed upon some 
object at right angles to where we were lying. Looking in the same direc- 
tion we saw a pair of gemsboks walking unsuspectingly toward the ambush. 
Just in front of the lion was a huge ant-hill, and toward it came the gems- 
boks, occasionally twitching their black tails; but that was to rid their flanks 
of flies and not from any fear of danger. 

As the antelopes drew near the ant-hill, the lion drew back his head until 
it was nearly concealed under his black, shaggy mane. They could not have 
possibly seen him where he lay, nor he them, and he now appeared to trust 
to his ears to inform him of their approach. 

He waited till both were opposite, and broadside toward him, at the 
distance of less than twenty paces from the hill. Then his tail was seen to 
vibrate with one or two quick jerks, his head shot suddenly forth, his body 



332 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 



spread out apparently to twice its natural size, and the next moment-he rose 
like a bird into the air. 

With one bound he cleared the wide space that separated him from the 
nearest of the gemsboks, alighting- on the hindquarters of the terrified 
animal. A single blow of his powerful paw brought the antelope to his 
haunches; and another, delivered almost at the same instant, stretched its 
body lifeless on the plain. 

Without looking after the other, or seeming to care further about it, the 
lion sprang upon the body of his victim, and clutching its throat between 
its jaws, commenced drinking its warm blood. 




THE GEMSBOK SLAYING THE LION. 



It was the bull gemsbok which the lion pulled down, as this was the one 
that happened to be nearest the hill. 

As the lion sprang upon her companion, the cow, of course, started with 
affright, and we supposed we would see her the next moment scouring off 
over the plain. To our astonishment she did no such thing. Such is not the 
nature of the noble oryx. On the contrary, as soon as she recovered from 
the first moments of alarm, she wheeled around toward the enemy — and, 
lowering her head to the very ground, so that her long horns projected 
"horizontally in front, she rushed with all her strength upon the lion. 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. ' 333 

The latter, in full enjoyment of his red draught, saw nothing of this 
manoeuvre. The first intimation he had of it was to feel a pair of spears 
pierced through his ribs, and it is not likely he felt much more. 

For some moments a confused struggle was observed, in which both lion 
and oryx seemed to take part; but the attitudes of both appeared so odd, 



A SOUTH AFRICAN GEMSBOK. 



and changed so rapidly, that we could not tell in what manner they were 
combating. In a few moments the roar of the lion ceased, and we knew that 
he was dead. 

We had crawled closer to witness the result of the battle, and were now 
within easy range for a shot. One of my Kaffir boys raised his rifle and 



334 THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 

aimed at the gemsbok, but before he could pull a trigger, I held up my hand 
in warning. 

"Don't shoot !" I exclaimed at the same time. "That gemsbok is entitled 
to her life, and as far as I am concerned she shall have it." 

We needed venison, too, but I am sure I would not have enjoyed eating 
that noble heroine. 

Antelopes are characterized by their graceful build, and by the head 
being carried considerably above the level of the back. The horns, which 
may or may not be present in the females, are generally long, more or less 
round. They are frequently marked with prominent rings, and have an 
upright direction. Their bony cores, instead of being honeycombed, as in 
the oxen, sheep, and goats, are nearly solid throughout. These animals 
very generally have a gland beneath the eye, by which they are distinguished 
from the oxen and goats; but, as regards their teeth, some of them resemble 
the oxen, while others are more like those of the sheep and goats. 

THE GEMSBOK. 

Under the title of oryx are five species of antelope, found throughout 
the desert regions of Africa, and also in Arabia and Syria. In South Africa 
the best representative of the oryx family is the gemsbok, which stands 
about four feet in height, is greyish in color, becoming white beneath. A 
black stripe on the flanks divides the grey of the sides from the white below, 
and there is also a black surface on the haunches extending as a line on the 
back, and continued over the whole of the tail. In addition to this, there is 
also black on the upper parts of the limbs, on the front of the legs above 
the fetlocks, and along the throat; the throat-stripe dividing and running 
up the sides of the head nearly to the ears. On the face a black stripe runs 
from each horn through the eye nearly to the muzzle, which is connected 
by a narrow stripe with a broad black patch on the center of the forehead. 
The longest male horns of this species I ever saw measured were 42 inches 
in length, while those of the female may reach 46^ inches. Horns have been 
recorded measuring 47^ inches. 

Gemsboks are generally met with where the country is either completely 
open or covered with stunted scrub. They thrive and attain high condition 
in barren regions where it might be imagined a locust would not find sub- 
sistence; and, burning as is the climate, they are perfectly independent of 
water, which, from my own observation and the repeated reports both of 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 



335 



the Boers and aborigines, I am convinced they never by any chance taste. 
The flesh ranks next to the eland. The gemsbok is by no means fleet, and 
it can be run to a standstill by a hunter on foot. 

In Abyssinia and Somaliland as well as on the Red Sea littoral near 
Snakin, the gemsbok is replaced by the beisa, readily distinguished by the 




FEMALE SABRE-HORNED ANTELOPE AND FAWN. 



absence of the tuft of hair on the throat, and by the black patch on the 
front of the face being completely separated from the stripe running through 
the eye. The horns are shorter than those of the gemsbok. The sabre- 
horned antelope differs from the others of the oryx family in its recurved 
scimitar-like horns, and whitish color which sometimes shows a reddish 
tinge. 



336 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 



THE ELAND. 



The African eland is the largest of the antelope tribe. They vary in color 
from a tawny yellow to a slaty blue, while in the extreme northern part of 
their range they are sometimes marked with white stripes. An average-size 
bull eland stands five feet nine inches at the withers and will weigh from 
i, too to 1,500 pounds. 

Eland are found both in the desert-country, and in wooded districts, both 
hilly and flat. In Nyasaland, their favorite haunts are undulating, well- 




A BUCK ELAND. 



timbered country, where the grass is not too long, and where there are 
intervening open plains; as a rule, they visit the plains at night or in the 
early mornings to drink, and then wander back long distances to the forest, 
where they spend the hot hours of the day. In the great Kalahari Desert, 
where they are still common, the eland go a long period without drinking 
any water, except that which they may obtain by eating watermelons and 
other plants. Eland are generally found in large herds, numbering from 
fifty to upwards of a hundred head, but solitary bulls or small parties of bulls 
are not unfrequently observed. 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 



337 



Elands are generally accompanied by "rhinoceros birds," which, in addi- 
tion to their natural timidity, make them difficult to approach on foot. Con- 
sequently they are generally hunted on horseback. The bulls, when fat, 
can be easily ridden down by a good horse; but the cows have greater speed 
and staying power. When pursued, eland frequently leap high in the air. 
When they have their calves with them, the cows will attack and impale 
do-s on their horns; but at other seasons both sexes are quite harmless. Mr. 
Sefous states that the flesh of the eland has been very generally over-esti- 




A NILGAI ANTELOPE. 

mated; and during the dry season, when these animals often subsist entirely 
upon leaves, it is quite uneatable. 

THE NILGAI. 

There is not much sport in hunting nilgai, the largest of the Indian 
antelope In closely settled districts they are as tame as domestic cattle, 
and in the unsettled districts where they are shy, they are easily ridden down 



338 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE 



by a good horse. They are a. poor trophy after they are shot, as the meat 
lacks flavor. 

The nilgai is exclusively a native of India, being entirely unknown even 
in Ceylon. The animal is peculiar in having the fore limbs longer than the 
hinder. 

Nilgai are found either on the plains or in low hills, generally preferring 
ground covered with thin bush, among which are scattered low trees, or 
alternations of scrub-jungle with open grassy plains. They are but seldom 
met with in thick forest, although far from unfrequent on cultivated grounds. 










-®^ 



SOUTH AFRICAN NATIVE HUNTING GNU. 



Only the males have horns, which are short, smooth and nearly straight, 
directed upward and backward. Nilgai both graze and browse, and in the 
cold season they drink but once in two or three days. 

THE GNU, OR WILDEBEEST. 

Next to a monkey, I believe the gnu or South African wildebeest, as the 
Dutch hunters call them, is the most inquisitive of all animals. 

In 'Wrecking" across the Transvaal I would frequently come upon herds 
of twenty to fifty. As soon as they caught sight of us they would begin 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 



339 



curveting around the wagons, wheeling about in endless circles and cutting 
all sorts of curious capers. 

While I was riding hard to obtain a shot at a herd in front of me, other 
herds charged down wind on my right -and left, and, having described a 
number of circular movements, they took up position upon the very ground 
across which I had ridden only a few minutes before. Singly, and in small 
troops of four or five individuals, the old bull wildebeests may be seen 
stationed at intervals throughout the plains, standing motionless during a 




THE BLUE OR BRINDLED GNU. 



whole forenoon, coolly watching with a philosophic eye the movements of 
the other game, uttering a loud snorting noise, and also a short sharp cry 
which is peculiar to them. When the hunter approaches these old bulls, 
they commence whisking their long white tails in a most eccentric manner; 
then, springing into the air, begin prancing and capering, and pursue each 
other in circles at their utmost speed. Suddenly they all pull up together 
to overhaul the intruder, when the bulls will often commence fighting in 
the most violent manner, dropping on their knees at every shock; then, 



340 THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 

quickly wheeling about, they kick up their heels, whirl their tails -with a 
fantastic flourish, and scour across the plain enveloped in a cloud of dust. 
In addition to their speed, wildebeest are remarkable for their extreme 
tenacity of life; and, owing to the vigorous use they make of their horns, 
are awkward creatures to hunt with dogs. Europeans find them good 
practice in rifle-shooting, as they will stand in herds at a distance which they 
think secure, say three hundred or four hundred yards, and watch the 
passer-by. Only occasionally can they be approached within easy range by 
fair stalking; although they may be killed by watching at their drinking- 
holes at night. During a thunderstorm of unusual intensity, I walked, 
hardly knowing where I was going, right into a herd of gnu. I did not see 
them until I was almost among them; but even had my gun not been hope- 
lessly soaked, the fearful storm made self-preservation, and not destruction, 
one's chief, thought. They were standing huddled in a mass, their heads 
together, and their sterns outwards, and they positively only just moved 
out of my way, much the same as a herd of cattle might have done. 

The faculty of curiosity is largely developed in the gnu, which can never 
resist the temptation of inspecting any strange object, although at the risk 
of its life. When a gnu first catches sight of any unknown being, he sets off 
at full speed, as if desirous of getting to the furthest possible distance from 
the terrifying object. Soon, however, the feeling of curiosity vanquishes 
the passion of fear, and the animal halts to reconnoitre. He then gallops in 
a circle round the cause of his dread. 

The native hunters are enabled to attract a herd of gnus, feeding out of 
shot, merely by getting up a clumsy imitation of an ostrich, by holding a 
head of that bird on a pole, and making at their back a peacock's tail of 
feathers. The inquisitive animals are so fascinated with the fluttering lure, 
that they actually approach so near as to be easily pierced with an arrow or 
an assegai. 

The gnu, or wildebeest, inhabits Southern Africa. At first sight it is 
difficult to say whether the horse, buffalo, or deer predominates in its form. 
It, however, belongs to neither of these animals, but is one of the bovine 
antelopes. The horns cover the top of the forehead, and then, sweeping 
downwards over the face, turn boldly upwards with a sharp curve. The 
neck is furnished with a mane like that of the horse, and the legs are formed 
like those of a stag. There are two species of wildebeest in South and East 
Africa. The common, or white-tail wildebeest, is strictly South African, 
while the blue or brindled wildebeest never goes south of the Orange River. 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 

PALA OR ROY-BOCK. 



341 



The pala or roy-bock is an inhabitant of Southern Africa, where it is seen 
in large herds. It is a remarkably fine animal, measuring three feet in height 
at the shoulder, and being gifted with elegantly shaped horns and a beauti- 
fully tinted coat. The general color of the pala is bay, fading into white on 
the abdomen, the lower part of the tail, and the peculiar disc of lighter-col- 




SOUTH AFRICAN BOSCH BOCK, 



ored hairs which surround the root of the tail in so many antelopes. Its 
specific name, Melampus, is of Greek origin, signifying black-footed, in allu- 
sion to the jetty hue of the back of its feet. 

The horns of this animal are of considerable length, often attaining to 
twenty inches, and are rather irregular in their growth. They are very dis- 
tinctly marked with rings. 



342 THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 

The food of the pala consists chiefly of tender herbage and the young 
twigs of the underwood among which it generally takes up its abode. It is 
hardly so timid as other animals of the same family, and will often allow 
strange creatures to approach the herd without much difficulty. It has a 
curious habit of walking away when alarmed, in the quietest and most silent 
manner imaginable, lifting up its feet high from the ground, lest it should 
haply strike its foot against a dry twig and give an alarm to its hidden foe. 
Palas have also a custom of walking in single file, each following the steps of 
its leader with blind confidence; and, when they have settled the direction in 
which they intend to march, they adhere to their plan, -and will not be turned 
aside even by the presence of human beings. It is generally found in or near 
the district where low wood prevails. 

THE PRONG-BUCK OR AMERICAN ANTELOPE. 

Of all the antelope tribe none affords the hunter as good sport and as 
fine venison as' the antelope found west of the Mississippi River, and known 
to scientists as the prong-buck or the prong-horned antelope. At one time 
it was common as far west as California and Oregon, but it is now found 
only in the Rocky mountain regions and on the plains between those moun- 
tains and the northern section of the Mississippi. It is a graceful, light- 
built animal, standing about two feet ten inches at the shoulder. 

The coloration of the prong-buck is decidedly handsome and striking; 
the general hair of the upper-parts and outer surfaces of the limbs being 
chestnut. The hair on the back of the neck, which is of the general chestnut 
tint, is lengthened into a kind of mane. The face is brownish black; but the 
summit of the head above the eyes, and likewise the ears, cheeks, and chin 
are white. White also prevails on the lower portion of the throat, the under- 
parts, and half of the flanks, and extends upwards to form a large patch on 
the rump which includes the tail. Usually the throat is crossed by three 
russet-yellow bars. The lower portion of the limbs is white. The horns 
are black, save at the tips, where they become yellowish; and their usual 
length is about 12 inches. They are shed once a year. 

The prong-buck or American antelope is shy and timid and can outrun 
the swiftest deer. 

In spite of their extreme speed, prong-buck are but poor jumpers, and 
appear unable to leap over any large object that may be in their path. Their 
inability to leap over high objects may no doubt be attributed to the fact 
that they live upon the plains, where they rarely meet with such obstruc- 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 



343 



tions, and sg they and their ancestors for untold generations have had no 
occasion to overleap high obstructions, and thus from disuse they do not 
know how to do it. 

If a prong-buck on the plains desires- to cross the railroad track, when 
alarmed by the cars, as is sometimes the case, he will strain every muscle 
to outrun the train and cross ahead of it, as if he suspected a purpose to cut 
him off from crossing; and thus many an exciting race has been witnessed 
between muscle and steam. When excited during its gambols with its fel- 
lows, or by the emotions of rage or fear, the appearance of the prong-buck 




PRONG-BUCK, OR AMERICAN ANTELOPE. 

alters considerably. On such occasions the hair of the white patch on the 
rump rises up on each side of the backbone, and remains as erect and stiff as 
bristles. 

There are many stories about the great distance that ostriches can see, 
but the ostrich is near-sighted when compared with the American antelope. 
I have never had any difficulty in getting within two hundred yards of an 
ostrich under favorable conditions, but during my early experience I never 
got closer than six hundred yards to an American antelope. Even at that 
distance the animal was wide awake and fully able to take care of itself. 



344 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 



The only antelope that excels the prong-buck in speed is the Indian 
black-buck. This fact is proved by coursing the animals with greyhounds. 
A swift and tough greyhound will overtake and pull down a prong-buck, but 
I have never known one to catch a black-buck in the open. 

The hide of the prong-buck is practically worthless on account of the 
brittleness of the hairs. 

INDIAN BLACK BUCK. 




INDIAN BLACK BUCK. 



The handsomely colored black buck, or Indian antelope, stands about 
32 inches at the shoulder. The usual length of the horn varies from 16 to 
20 inches. The upper parts of the animal are jet black and the lower parts 
white. 

This antelope never enters forest nor high grass, and is but rarely seen 
amongst bushes. When not much pursued or fired at, it will often allow 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 



345 



men to come in the open within about one hundred and fifty yards, some- 
times nearer. Carts and natives can approach still closer. The black buck 
feeds at all hours, although it generally rests during the middle of the day. 
In certain districts, where there is no fresh water except in deep wells, 
it is certain that these animals never drink; but several observers have proved 
that in other places they, at least occasionally, drink freely. Like the 
springbok, the black buck frequently leaps high in the air when running. 




THE ADDAX, EGYPTIAN ANTELOPE. 

The speed and endurance of these animals are well known; and it is 
but very seldom that they are pulled down on good ground by greyhounds. 
In heavy sand, or on soft ground during the rains, they are, however, easily 
overtaken by good dogs; and wounded bucks may be ridden down. The 
favorite method of hunting them, however, is with the chita, or hunting 
leopard. 

Young fawns are generally concealed by the does in long grass. The 



346 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 



bucks utter a short grunt, and the does a kind of hissing- sound when 
alarmed. 

THE ADDAX ANTELOPE. 

The addax, or spiral horned antelope, is a native of Northern Africa, 
ranging from the Nile to Lake Tchad and Senegal. It is a genuine desert 
antelope. Sometimes it is called the Mendes antelope, because in the 
Egyptian temple of Mendes are many images of Egyptian gods wearing head 




FEMALE SWAMP ANTELOPE. 



dresses of horns which were spiral shaped. The addax is of uniformly light 
color, with a brownish grey mane. It has a huge tuft of hair on the forehead 
which looks as if it had received the attention of a hair dresser. The ancient 
Egyptians kept the addax as a domestic animal. 

THE SWAMP ANTELOPE. 

The harnessed antelope of West Africa greatly resembles the kucru or 
pigmy antelope. The species shown in the accompanying illustration is 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 



347 



from the Camerun mountains and the Gabun district. This antelope has 
white spots on the head and stripes on the body, but differs from other har- 
nessed antelopes in the extremely long hoofs, which are evidently specially 
adapted for walking on swampy ground. The lateral hoofs are large and elon- 
gated. The male stands about three and one-half feet at the shoulder; and is 
characterized by the absence of a fringe of long hair on the throat, and the 




A YOUNG BLESSBOK. 



dark olive tint of the coat. In the female the ground-color of the fur is bright 
rufous, ornamented, as in the male, with white spots on the face and stripes on 
the body. The horns of the male are generally about 18 or 19 inches in 
length; measured in a straight line. Little or nothing appears to be known as 
to the habits of this species in its wild state. Its common name is swamp 
antelope. 



348 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 



THE BLESSBOK. 

The blessbok and the closely-allied bontebok, are smaller South African 
antelopes. In both species the horns are compressed, with the rings strongly 
marked. For a short distance they run almost parallel, and then curve 
backwards. Their usual length is about 15 inches. Both species are charac- 
terized by their brilliant purple-red color, and the broad white "blaze" down 




A WATER BUCK. 



the face, from which the blessbok takes its name. In height the blessbok 
stands about 3 feet 2 inches or rather more at the withers, but the bontebok 
may reach from 3 feet 2 inches to 3 feet 1 1 inches. 

The blessboks resemble the smaller springbok in manners and habits. 
They differ from the latter in the determined and invariable way in which 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 



349 



they scour the plains, right in the wind's eye, and also in the manner in 
which they carry their noses close to the ground. 

The water buck stands upwards of 4 feet or more at the withers, and 
has long and very coarse hair, which varies in color from reddish brown 
to dark gray, with an oval ring of white on the buttocks, a white gorget on 
the throat, a streak of the same color on part of each eye, and some white 




FEMALE NILGAI. 

near the muzzle. Good horns average about 28 inches along the curve. 
Water buck inhabit Southern and Eastern. Africa to some distance north 
of the Zambesi; and they are never found in herds of more than twenty 
individuals. The water buck is most partial to steep, stony hills, and is 
often found at a distance of more than a mile from the nearest river, for 
which, however, it always makes when pursued. 



350 



THE STORY OF THE ANTELOPE. 



The hartebeest of South Africa gets its name from its supposed likeness 
to a stag. 

All these animals differ from wildebeests by their long and pointed heads, 
ending in a narrow muzzle; their ringed horns, the absence of a mane on 
the neck or throat, and their shorter and less thickly-haired tail. 

The true hartebeest is a South African species, not ranging as far north 
as Matabeleland and Mashonaland. This fine animal stands about four feet 
at the withers; its general color being grayish brown, with a pale yellowish 




THE HARTEBEEST. 



p'atch on each side of the haunches, and black markings on the forehead and 
nose. The hair of the face is reversed as high up as the eyes, or even to the 
horns. The horns are long and boldly ringed, diverging from one another 
in the form of a V, with their tips directed backwards at a right angle, 
and the bases curved away behind the plane of the forehead. Their length 
varies in good specimens from 20 to 24 inches. It is one of the fastest ante- 
lopes in Africa, and possesses such strength as to render it almost impossible 
for anything under a whole pack of strong and swift hounds to bring it to bay. 




ZEBRA, OR TIGER HORSE 



Colonel Roosevelt Secures a Zebra for the National Museum— Natives Hunt them for Food— 
A Herd of Zebras on the Velt— Hundreds of Thousands of them in East Africa. 



While Africa has no" horses and no tigers, still it has an animal which in 
some respects at least resembles both and, therefore, has been called the 
"tiger-horse," or zebra, meaning streaked or banded. These beautiful equines 
are yery numerous in East Africa — some travelers have estimated their num- 
ber at half a million— and Colonel Roosevelt saw large herds of them along 
the Uganda Railroad and on the Kapiti Plains. Like the gnu, the zebra is 
an inquisitive animal. When frightened it will scamper away a few hundred 
yards and then stop and look around as if to find out who its pursuers are. 
The Colonel secured several fine specimens of zebra for the National Museum. 
While he did not find the zebra hunt a dangerous pastime, still it was not 
entirely void of excitement, for the zebra is exceedingly ferocious and attacks 
with its teeth anyone approaching sufficiently near, as we may see when we 
visit our zoological gardens, which usually possess one or more specimens of 
the African zebra. 

Our ex-President found it hard to distinguish these black-and-white striped 
animals even at close range, for they blend remarkably well with the colors 
of the velt. Under certain lights they appear greyish, and when they were 
resting at noon, in the shade of trees and high bushes, the dancing shadows of 
branches and twigs mingled strangely with their stripes. 

The zebra is polygamous, a sort of animal Mormon. The strong stallion 

351 



352 ZEBRA, OR TIGER-HORSE. 

guards his harem jealously. He is not only the lord, but also the protector of 
his herd. He acts as a sentinel and gives the alarm with a shrill neigh if a 
beast of prey or a hunter approaches. Then the troop gallops away with a 
great clatter and in a cloud of dust. The zebra is often also heard to utter 
a noise like a hoarse bark. 

Lately many attempts have been made in British East Africa to tame the 
zebra and to make it generally useful. Some claim that it is destined to 
become a useful "beast of burden" and draft animal ; in fact, to take the place 
of our horse, which is useless in the African tropics, as it succumbs unfailingly 
to the climate and the tsetse-fly. And, no doubt, the "zebra can be tamed, and 
may perhaps become domesticated in time, but surely not so soon as enthusiasts 
would have us believe. This in spite of the fact that a few young animals, 
some born in captivity, have been broken to drive in fancy carts and carriages. 
But the moment hard and persistent labor was asked of them, as we do of 
our horses, they lie down and die of "broken hearts." Meanwhile the British 
government is trying to solve Africa's horse problem by producing a cross- 
breed of zebra and horse, which is expected to retain the best qualities of 
both and at the same time be able to endure the climate. 

Says a famous African traveler and sportsman : 

My first introduction to the zebra in his wild state was in the hilly 
country of Eastern Africa. The native hunters of my party wanted some 
zebra meat, of which they are extremely fond on account of the large 
amount of yellow fat it contains. 

Saddling our best horses, we made an early start. It was ten o'clock, 
however, before we came in sight of our quarry. The herd comprised about 
fifty head and was grazing among a mixed herd of antelope and wild goats. 
A large antelope had been posted as a sentinel and gave warning of our 
approach. The shrill whistle of the antelope blended with the peculiar 
neigh of the zebras, which is a mixture of donkey notes and the subdued 
whining of a dog. 

They started for the higher ground and we followed. At first they ran 
in single file, the stallions ahead, but . as we urged our horses faster and 
drew closer they ran more in a bunch. At last one of the natives got a 
shot at a fine young filly and put a bullet in her body near the shoulder. 
She dropped to her knees, but was up again in a flash, and at once obeyed 
a rule in force among these animals by separating from the herd and running 
off at right angles. The natives pursued her, overtook her and shot her 
down." 



354 



THE STORY OF THE ZEBRA. 



That night they had a great feast. I tasted the zebra flesh, but" found 
it unpalatable. I had shot two fine antelopes, and although I offered my 
men one of the carcasses, they declined it and ate the zebra instead. 

The alternating yellowish-white and brown-black stripes of the zebra, 
which markings of the skin and hair are more pronounced than in any 
other of the wild animals, not excepting the tiger, give the name to the 
animal. Zebraed means banded, and the name is appropriate to the horse- 
tiger, as the zebra is sometimes called. The haunts of the animal in its 
natural state are among the mountainous and almost inaccessible regions of 




A FAMILY OF ZEBRAS. 



Southern and Eastern Africa. Shy by nature, and endowed with wonderful 
powers of sight, few zebras have been captured alive. The animal is rarely 
found alone, preferring to travel in large troops. ' 

The three known species of zebra, together with the quagga, form a 
group agreeing in essential character with the asses, but distinguished 
by their more or less completely striped heads and bodies. In both these 
groups the mane is erect, and the upper part of the tail is free from long 
hairs; while there are naked callosities on the fere limbs only, and the ears 



THE STORY OF THE ZEBRA. 



355 



are longer, the head relatively larger, and the hoofs narrower than in the 
horse. 

The true or mountain zebra is the typical representative of the striped 
group, and is essentially an inhabitant of hilly districts. It is the smallest 
of the three species, standing from 4 feet to 4 feet 2 inches (12 to 12^ hands) 
at the withers, and has relatively long ears and a comparatively short mane, 
with the tail but scantily haired. The general ground-color of the hair 




EAST AFRICAN ZEBRA. 



(Showing how it is hunted.) 

is white, while the stripes are black, and the lower part of the face is light 
brown. With the exception of the under parts of the body and the inner 
sides of the thighs, the whole of the head, body and limbs, as well as the 
upper part of the tail, are striped. 

All who have seen zebras in their native haunts speak of the beautiful 
appearance presented by a drove as they stand for a moment to gaze at the 
hunter, and then wheel round to seek safety in flight; and as they afford 



356 THE STORY OF THE ZEBRA. 

but unsatisfactory trophies, it seems a pity that so many are killed for the 
mere sake of sport. When standing on sandy ground in full moonlight, a 
zebra harmonizes so exactly with the color of its surroundings as to be 
quite invisible at a short distance. 

It is very wild and suspicious, carefully placing sentinels, to look out 
for danger. Notwithstanding these precautions, several zebras have been 
taken alive, and some, in spite of their vicious habits, have been trained 
to draw a carriage. In all probability it might be domesticated like the 
ass, as the black cross on the back and shoulders of the latter animal prove 
the affinity between them. In the Transvaal there are many teams made up 
partly of zebras and partly of mules. 

The quagga, so far as color is concerned, forms a connecting link be- 
tween the zebras and the asses ; but in its short ears, and the extent to which 
the tail is haired, approximates to the horse. In height it stands about the 
same as the true zebra; in color the upper parts are of a light reddish-brown, 
with the head, neck and front half of the body marked with irregular choco- 
late-brown stripes, gradually becoming fainter, until they are quite lost on 
the hind-quarters. There is a dark stripe running down the back on to the 
upper part of the tail; but the rest of the tail, together with the under-parts, 
the inner sides of the thighs, and the legs, are white. 

Its actual habitat. may be precisely defined as within Cape Colony, the 
Orange Free State, and Griqualand West. I do not find that it ever ex- 
tended to Namaqualand and the Kalahari- Desert to the west, or beyond 
the Kei River, the ancient eastern limit of the Cape Colony to the east. 






AFRICA'S GREATEST BIRD 

Mr. Roosevelt's Visit to Sir Alfred Pease's Ostrich Farm — The Story of This Wonder- 
ful Bird. 



While riding on the cowcatcher along the Uganda Railroad, to get a 
better view of the surroundings than the closed coaches would afford, Mr. 
Roosevelt had a splendid opportunity to see almost all the various kinds of 
small and big game that crowd the British game reserve on both sides of the 
road. .... Among these were also seen the huge black ostriches so characteristic 
to the animal life of East Africa. The Colonel did not fail to avail himself 
of this excellent opportunity to see this interesting bird at close range and 
to study its habits: 

Some of the European residents in tropical Africa have engaged in ostrich 
farming, and Sir Alfred Pease, who royally entertained our ex-President on 
his magnificent ranch, located in the middle of the beautiful Kapiti Plains, 
has a large ostrich farm on his big estate. While Mr. Roosevelt cares more 
for wild animals and the exciting hunt of dangerous beasts than for the tame 
ones, still he eagerly embraced this rare" chance to inspect an industry which 
bids fair to become an important factor in the development of Africa and also 
has proved a success in America. 

He found the birds in an enclosure comprising several hundred acres, 
so as to leave them sufficient space to indulge in their natural habits of 
running along the sandy ground. About three hundred birds were at the time 
on the farm, half of them being young ones, while the rest already wore the 
so-much-coveted plumage which makes this bird so valuable a possession. 

The native keepers of the birds entertained the American visitor with 
interesting stories of their habits, most of them having hunted and captured 
ostriches in the desert and on the plains. 

"The ostrich," one of the Swahili servants said, "has a wary eye and it 
is very difficult to approach him when he is feeding in the wilderness. But 
he is a silly bird. When pursued by the hunters he starts to run in the same 
direction as his pursuers and never turns, apparently hoping to outdo them 
by his speed, while by going in another direction he could easily escape.'' 

The Colonel noticed that the ostrich's pace, when feeding quietly within 
its enclosure, measured about twenty inches, and when walking but not feed- 
ing, it was six inches more. A keeper chased one of the birds around and 

-357 



358 



AFRICA'S GREATEST BIRD. 



when running at full speed its pace was found to be from eleven to fourteen 
feet in length. Its speed was so great that it was no more possible to follow 
the legs than the spokes in a carriage wheel in rapid motion, and Mr. Roose- 
velt remarked that it must amount to about twenty-six miles an hour, which 
is somewhat slower than a railroad train. 

The ostrich is kept exclusively on account of its valuable feathers. Its 
flesh is tough and almost black, and unfit for food. One ostrich egg is large 




PHOTOGRAPH OF AN OSTRICHES NEST. THE DARK SPOTS ARE PATCHES OF SAND. 

enough to supply a full meal for four persons of ordinary appetite, but their 
taste is not tempting. The feathers could, until lately, only be obtained from 
the wild bird, which had to be tracked and hunted by natives, for very few 
Europeans have succeeded in killing him. Consequently the ostrich plumes 
were very high priced and so much sought for that the bird was threatened 
with total extermination. In fact, it has become so rare that it is only a 
question of time when it will have ceased to be a wild animal, and exist only 
as a domestic or tame one, like the camel. 

Several attempts have been made to train the ostrich so as to render him 
useful as a carrier of packages and mail between the oases of the deserts, 
where he is perfectly at home and where his services would be extremely 
valuable, as he could stand the torrid climate even better than the camel and 






AFRICA'S GREATEST BIRD. 



359 



run almost as fast as a train. But all such experiments have proved futile. 
This large and strong bird is too stupid to become Africa's two-legged horse, 
and its usefulness seems to be confined to. supplying our ladies' Easter hats 
with one of their most valuable and attractive ornaments. 




A MISSIONARY SEWING SCHOOL. 

While at Sir Alfred Pease's farm Mr. Roosevelt also paid a visit to some 
of the missionary stations which many English and American churches have 
established in this uncivilized territory, where about three thousand white 
men have settled down among and tried to govern 5,000,000 black savages. 
He was, of course, much interested in the American mission at Machakos, a 



360 AFRICA'S GREATEST BIRD. 

former slave station often mentioned in Stanley's early travels. He. -praised 
the missionaries for their self-sacrificing and unselfish work, and especially 
commented upon their laudable efforts to instruct the natives in useful occu- 
pations and teach them the domestic virtues, which so much contribute to 
happiness and are so essential to progress. One of our illustrations shows 
how the daughters of the savage natives are taught the art of sewing in a 
recently established sewing school in the vicinity of Kapiti Plains. 

The former President and Sir Alfred Pease were entertained at luncheon 
by the American missionaries. The remarkable progress made by the natives 
who had been educated by the missionaries and their incomparable superiority 
Over their savage kinsmen, who still were roving around in the surrounding 
woods, could not but make a deep impression on Mr. Roosevelt. He considers 
the united efforts to Christianize the African natives now being made by all 
Christian denominations one of the greatest civilizing agencies now at work 
in this so long neglected continent with its teeming millions of uneducated and 
barbarian aborigines. 

But we return to the ostrich and its interesting story. 

Ostrich farming has become an important industry in several parts of 
Africa and Asia, and has been introduced recently into the United States and 
is successfully carried on in Arizona and California. I have frequently had 
opportunities to study the habits of this bird at these farms. None of the 
characteristics of the ostrich is as unique as the manner of hiding from a foe 
adopted by the foolish bird. As it lives chiefly in desert-like districts where 
the 'soil is sandy, it experiences little difficulty in burying its head, and this 
subterfuge is always adopted when flight is not possible. I have often seen 
a recently captured ostrich watch the approach of a man, and after seeking 
to escape, it simply dropped to its knees and dug its head into the sand until 
its eyes were covered. This attitude it would maintain for half an hour, 
when, looking up and the man being out of sight-, it would resume its 
gambols or feeding. But when flight is possible, it escapes danger by run- 
ning. Since it cannot run in a straight line, a man on horseback can readily 
secure it by intercepting its course, instead of riding after it. Its speed is 
greater than that of the fastest horse. 

I have seen a number of large ostriches, one of which measured 4 feet 
10 inches in height at the back, and had a total length of 4 feet 3 inches. 
Ordinary examples reach only about 3 feet 8 inches in height. 

The digestion of an ostrich is proverbial, and while in their^generai diet 
these birds will eat all kinds of food, they are likewise in the habit of swallow- 






THE STORY OF THE OSTRICH. 361 

ing stones, sand, bones, or even pieces of metal, to aid in digestion. Jn 
captivity this habit probably becomes abnormally developed; and I know 
of instances where even the constitution of an ostrich could not resist the 
effects of some of the substances swallowed. Among the ordinary food of 
the ostrich are comprised many small animals, birds, snakes, lizards and 
insects, as well as grass, leaves, fruits, berries and seeds. 

I knew of one that swallowed some broken bits of glass and died in 







.- - 


* * ym *^^' M- i 


i-'fPg 


#•-'4^ 










« - , - 





A MALE OSTRICH. 



great agony. It was a female. So devoted was the male that he pined, 
and died of grief. 

The ostrich is chiefly valuable for its plumage, and the Arabians have 
reduced the chase of it to a kind of science. They hunt it on horseback, and 
begin their pursuit by a gentle gallop; for, should they at the outset use 
the least rashness, the matchless speed of the game would immediately carry 
it out of their sight, and in a very short time beyond their reach. But when 
they proceed gradually, it' makes no particular effort to escape. It does 



562 



THE STORY OF THE OSTRICH. 



not go in a direct line, but runs either in a large circle or first to one side 
and then to the other; this its pursuers take advantage of, and, by rushing 
directly onward, save much ground. In a few days, at most, the strength 
of the animal is exhausted, and it then either turns on the hunters and fights 
with the fury of despair, or hides its head, and tamely receives its fate. 

I can attest to the development of the maternal instinct, which many 
naturalists deny. I once fell in with a troop of about twelve young ostriches 




-AA/V^*S*#'\) 






HOW SOUTH AMERICAN OSTRICHES ARE HUNTED. 



which were not much larger than guinea-fowls. I was amused to see the 
mother endeavor to lead us away, exactly like a wild duck, spreading out 
and drooping her wings, and throwing herself down on the ground before us 
as if wounded, while the cock bird cunningly led the brood away in an 
opposite direction. 

The ostrich egg will weigh on the average about three pounds, being 
equal to two dozen ordinary fowl's eggs; yet one of them is not thought too 




AFRICAN OSTRICHES. 



363 



364 THE STORY OF THE OSTRICH. 

much for a single man to eat at a meal, and in one instance" two men 
finished' five in the course of an afternoon. The approved method of dress- 
ing ostrich eggs is to set the egg upright on the fire, break a round hole at 
the top, squeeze a forked stick into the aperture, leaving the stem protrud- 
ing, and then to twist the stick rapidly between the hands so as to beat up 
the contents of the egg while it is being cooked. Within each egg there 
are generally some little smooth bean-shaped stones, which are composed 
of the same substance that forms the shell. 

In South America the place of the ostriches is taken by an allied group 
of birds known as rheas, or, as they are often termed, American ostriches. 
The wings are proportionately longer, and are covered with long, slender 
plumes. The best known, and at the same time the most abundant, of the 
three species by which the single genus is now represented, is the common 
rhea, inhabiting the pampas of Argentina and Patagonia. This species is 
far inferior in size to the ostrich, but it is the largest of the three. It is 
generally seen in pairs, though it sometimes associates together in flocks 
of twenty or thirty in number. Like all the members of this group, it is 
swift-footed and wary, but possesses so little presence of mind that it be- 
comes confused when threatened with danger, runs aimlessly first in one 
direction, and then in another, thus giving time for the hunter to come up 
and shoot it, or bring it to the ground with his "bolas" — a terrible weapon, 
consisting of a cord 'with a heavy ball at each end, which is flung at the 
bird and winds its coils around its neck and legs, so as to entangle it and 
bring it to the ground. 

Although now confined to Africa, Syria, Arabia and Mesopotamia— and 
becoming every year scarcer in the three last-mentioned countries— there is 
a probability that ostriches formerly existed within the historic period, in parts 
of Central Asia and possibly in Baluchistan, since there are several allusions 
to birds which can scarcely be anything else than ostriches in various ancient 
writings. Quite apart, however, from this, the evidence of its fossilized re- 
mains shows that an extinct species of ostrich, nearly allied to the existing 
kind, once inhabited North- Western India, and a petrified egg from the 
Province of Cherson in Russia, points to the former existence of these birds 
in that country. Originally it is probable that the ostrich ranged in suitable 
localities from Senegambia in the west, through Southern Morocco, Algeria 
and Egypt, to Arabia, Syria and Mesopotamia in the east; while in the 
other direction it extended from Algeria through Central and Eastern Africa. 




THE STORY OF THE LIZARD. 



In this country there are many harmless species of lizard, but in the 
Rocky Mountain region are found some that are exceedingly poisonous. The 
desert lizard, which ranges from; Central America to Arizona and New 
Mexico, is the only one that has a deadly sting. The fairy-like teeth have 
grooves for the transmission of the fluid similar to the cobra. 

The lizards are usually active, bright-eyed little creatures, delighting to 
bask in the sun, near some safe retreat, to which they'dart with astonishing 
celerity upon the slightest alarm. Two species of lizards are found in the 
eastern and central states — the common lizard and the sand lizard. The 
latter animal is considerably larger than the common lizard, as it sometimes 
measures a foot in length. It frequents sandy heaths, and in the sand its 
eggs are deposited, fourteen or fifteen in number. The eggs are hatched by 
the heat of the sun, and the young immediately lead an independent life. Dur- 
ing the winter this as well as the common lizard hibernates in a burrow 
usually made under the roots of a tree, nor does it again make its appearance 
until the spring. 

The common lizard is only six inches in length. It is more active than 
the sand lizard, disappearing like magic on being alarmed. When seized, its 
tail frequently snaps off like grass. 

The heart in man and the higher animals is divided into a double set of 
compartments, technically termed auricles and ventricles, each set having no' 

36s 



3G6 THE STORY OF THE LIZARD. 

direct communication with the other. In the reptiles, however, this-structure 
is considerably modified, the arterial and venous blood finding- a communica- 
tion either within or just outside the two ventricles, so that the blood is never 
so perfectly aerated as in the higher animals. The blood is consequently 
much colder than in the creatures where the oxygen obtains a freer access to 
its particles. 

In consequence of this organization the whole character o>f the reptiles is 
widely different from that of the higher animals. Dull sluggishness seems 
to be the general character of a reptile, for though there are some species 
which whisk about with lightning speed, and others, especially the larger 
lizards, can be lashed into a state of terrific frenzy by love, rage or hunger, 
their ordinary movements are inert, their gestures express no feeling, and 
their eyes, though bright, are stony, cold and passionless. Their mode of 
feeding accords with the general habits of their bodies, and the process of 
digestion is peculiarly slow. 

The most peculiar feature of the lizard is the facility with which it is 
enabled to> reproduce lost parts, and more especially the tail. In many lizards, 
when handled, the tail breaks off without any rough usage, and in all or 
nearly all it will readily come in two if pulled when the creature is seeking 
to escape. Such missing portion of the tail is speedily reproduced, and 
whereas the scaling of the reproduced portion is like the original, in certain 
other forms this is by ho> means always the case. 

The water monitor is a native of those parts of Africa .through which the 
Nile, its favorite river, flows. 

The natives have a curious idea that it is hatched from crocodile's eggs 
that have been laid on hot elevated spots, and that in process of time it be- 
comes a crocodile. It is almost always found in the water, though it some- 
times makes excursions on land in search of prey. To the natives it is a 
most useful creature, being one of the appointed means for keeping the num- 
bers, of the crocodile within due bounds. It not only searches on land for the 
eggs of the crocodile, and thus destroys great numbers before they are hatched, 
but chases the young in the water, and devours them unless they can take 
refuge under the adult of their own species, which the monitor will not dare 
attack. 

When full grown, the water monitor attains a length of five or six feet. 
The color of this species is olive-gray above, with blackish mottlings. The 
head is gray, and, in the young animal, is marked with concentric rows of 
white spots. Upon the back of the neck is a series of whitish yellow bands, of 




THE BLACK IGUANA IN A BANANA TREE. 



368 



THE STORY OF THE LIZARD. 



a horse-shoe, or semi-lunar shape, set crosswise, which, together -with the 
equal-sized scales over the eyes, serve as marks which readily distinguish it 
from many other species. The under parts are gray, with cross bands of 
black, and marked with white spots when young. 

The lizards commonly known as flying dragons are elegant and harmless 
little creatures to whom such a title seems inappropriate, and therefore I 
prefer to substitute the name of flying lizards. These flying lizards, which 
are represented by twenty-one species, ranging over the greater part of the 




WATER MONITORS ROBBING A NEST. 



Oriental region, are at once distinguished from all their kindred by the de- 
pressed body being provided with a large wing-like membranous expansion, 
capable of being folded up like a fan. The throat is furnished with a large 
membranous expansion, on the sides of which are a smaller pair; and the 
tail is long and whiphlike. The best known of the species is the Malay flying 
lizard. 

The flying lizards generally frequent the crown of trees, and as they 
are comparatively scarce, and seldom descend to the ground, they are but 







GREEN WALL LIZARDS. 



370 THE STORY OF THE LIZARD. 

rarely seen. As the lizard lies in shade along the trunk of a tree, its colors 
at a distance appear like a mixture of brown and gray, and render it scarcely 
distinguishable from the bark. There it remains with no sign of life, except 
the restless eyes, watching passing insects, which, suddenly expanding its 
wings, it seizes with a sometimes considerable, unerring leap'. The lizard 
itself appears to* possess no power of changing its colors. When excited, the 
appendages on the throat are expanded or erected; and the ordinary move- 
ments of the creature take the form of a series of leaps. 

There is an Australian species commonly known as the moloch, but termed 
by the settlers the spiny lizard or thorny devil, which seems of peculiar in- 
terest to me. This differs from all the other members of the family in being 
covered with large conical spines. About eight inches in total length, this 
extraordinary lizard has a small head, with an extremely short snout, on the 
summit of which are pierced the nostrils. On each side of the head imme- 
diately above the small eye is a large horn curving outwards and backwards,' 
while there is a smaller conical spine above the nostril, a second behind the 
horn over the eye, a third and larger one in front o>f each ear, as well as one 
on each side. On the back the spines form ten o<r more series, of which the 
outermost are the largest. 

Inhabiting Southern and Western Australia, and being not uncommon in 
several localities in the neighborhood of Port Augusta, the moloch is found 
only in districts where the soil is dry and sandy. Occasionally two or three 
may be observed basking in company on the top of a sandhill; and it is the 
frequent habit of this lizard to bury itself in the sand to> a small depth below 
the surface. Although generally very slow in its movements, it has been 
known, when disturbed, to make for a neighboring hole with considerable 
speed. 




THE STORY OF THE SHREW. 



The .shrew family has so many varieties that I will have to confine myself 
to some of the most interesting and important ones. These elegant little 
creatures are often mistaken for mice, in fact, they are commonly called shrew 
mice, 'although they belong to the family of insect-eating animals, and resemble 
a mole more than they do> a mouse. 

With the exception of a few varieties which have taken to a life in the 
water, the shrews live on the land and are active only at night. They are all 
covered with fur, generally remarkable for its softness ; the head is long, with 
a sharply pointed snout projecting far in advance of the tip of the lower jaw; 
their eyes are extremely small and bead-like. They are to> be met with 
throughout the whole of the temperate and tropical regions of Europe, Asia, 
Africa and North America, as well as on many of the adjacent islands. From 
their obscure and retiring habits the shrews are difficult of observation ; their 
long and pointed snout, their elastic form, and short and velvety coat enable 
them to> pass through the closest herbage, or beneath the carpets of dry leaves 
in the coppice and woodland, in which places, as well as in the open fields, 
whether cultivated or in pasture, they seek their food. But they are not con- 
fined to such places, however, as with their relatives, the water shrews, they 
are often met with in marshy and fen districts. On the other hand, one of 
the Indian shrews constantly frequents dwelling-houses. 

The common shrews are known by their red teeth, the large size of their 

371 






372 THE STORY OF THE SHREW. 

ears, and their long tails. The reel-toothed shrews are quite unknown in 
Africa south of the Sahara, and they are only represented in India and the rest 
of the Oriental region by a single variety. 

The common shrew, found abundantly in the British Islands, measures 
just short of three inches in length, exclusive of the tail, and is usually of a 
reddish mouse-color, paler beneath, with the tail rather shorter than the body. 
There is, however, considerable individual variation in color, specimens being 
sometimes found banded with white. Its food is insects, worms, snails and 
slugs. 

Shrews are so given to fighting that two> are rarely seen together except 
when in a fight, and if two or more are confined together, the strongest will 
soon kill the others. 

The strong scent of the shrew serves to protect it against many foes, but 
it is not strong enough to disgust the owl, which bird kills and devours 
shrews with great relish. A cat will kill a shrew but will not eat it. 

The varieties of shrews found in the United States are among the smallest 
members of the family. They spend less time underground, but when they 
move about on the surface they always seek the cover of fallen leaves and 
twigs. 

The naturalist knows that however cautiously he may move his footsteps 
put to flight many forms of life that will reappear as soon as quiet is restored ; 
therefore he often waits and watches and stops to listen and observe. While 
thus occupied, it sometimes happens that a slight rustling reaches his ears. 
There is no wind, but his eyes rest upon a fallen leaf that seems to move. 
Presently another stirs, and perhaps a third turns completely over. Then 
something like the shadow of an embryo 1 mouse appears and vanishes before 
the eye can catch its perfect image. Anon the restless phantom flits across 
an open space, leaving no trace behind. But a charge of fine shot dropped with 
quick aim upon the next leaf that moves will usually solve the mystery. The 
author of the perplexing commotion is found tO' be a curious sharp-nosed 
creature, no bigger than one's little finger, and weighing hardly more than 
half a drachm. Its ceaseless activity, and the rapidity with which it darts 
from place to place, are truly astonishing, and rarely permit the observer a 
correct impression of its form. Whenever a tree or a large limb falls to' the 
ground these shrews soon find it, examining every part with great care, and 
if a knot-hole or crevice is detected, leading to' a cavity within, they are 
pretty sure to enter, carry in materials for a nest, and take formal possession. 
Not only are these agile and restless little shrews voracious and almost insati- 







WATER SHREWS. 



373 



374 THE STORY OF THE SHREW. 

able, consuming tremendous quantities of raw meat and insects with great 
eagerness, but they are veritable cannibals withal, and will even slay and 
devour their own kind. 

The marsh-shrew from the Rocky Mountains, together with the swimming 
shrew from one of the Aleutian Islands, differ from the other members in hav- 
ing their feet provided with fringes of long hair. 

Another variety of the red-toothed family is the short-tailed shrew found 
in the Adirondack Mountains. 

The water-shrew, although unknown in Ireland, is found all over England 
and the south of Scotland. It likewise occurs over a large area of continental 
Europe, from whence it extends eastwards into Asia as far as the Atlas range. 
In the water these graceful little creatures are as much at home as water-voles 
or beavers ; and in clear streams they may be observed during the day diving 
or running along the bottom, and turning over the pebbles with their sharp 
noses in search of fresh-water shrimps, which appear to constitute their favor- 
ite food. In addition, the water-shrew devours many kinds of water insects or 
their larvae, while it is also probable that it likewise preys on the spawn or fry 
of minnows and other small fish. There are, moreover, several instances on 
record where water-shrews have been found feeding on the flesh of larger 
animals, which they have found dead. The burrows of the water-shrew are 
made along the banks of ponds and streams. 

The largest of the' shrews is plentiful in India and is known as the 
musk-shrew, of which there are two varieties, brown and gray. The brown 
musk-shrew is found as a rule in woods (although it will occasionally enter 
buildings), the gray musk-shrew generally haunts human habitations. The 
gray musk-shrew is a common visitor to Indian houses. During the day it 
lies concealed in holes and drains, issuing forth at night to hunt over the floors 
of rooms for cockroaches and other insects ; while thus engaged it utters from 
time to time a short, sharp squeak. In respect of its insect-eating habits, this 
musk-shrew is a benefactor to' mankind ; but these benefits are accompanied by 
the drawback that various articles may be so impregnated with the musky 
secretion of the animal as to' become utterly useless. There has, however, been 
much exaggeration as to the penetrating power of this scent, the well-known 
but absurd story that wine or beer becomes impregnated with a musky flavor 
from the circumstance of one of these shrews having run over the outside 
of the bottle containing such liquor, being a case in point. 




STORY OF THE HEDGEHOG. 



School children in England become familiar with a strange little animal 
that is rarely seen in this country, although it inhabits parts of Africa and 
Asia'. It is the hedgehog, or urchin, which is guarded with spikes. These 
spikes are fixed into the skin in a very beautiful and simple manner. When 
the hedgehog is annoyed it rolls itself up', and the tightness of the skin causes 
all its spines to stand firm and erect, bidding defiance to an unprotected hand. 
While rolled up, even the dog and the fox are baffled by it; but their in- 
genuity enables them to overcome the difficulty by rolling it along until they 
push it into a puddle or pool, when the astonished hedgehog immediately un- 
rolls itself to< see what is the matter, and before it can close itself again is 
seized by its crafty enemy. 

Many more fortunate animals have outlived the aspersions cast upon their 
character by ignorant persons, but the prejudice against the hedgehog is still 
in full vigor in the agricultural districts. Scarcely a farmer or a laborer will 
be persuaded that the hedgehog does not suck the cows. Now this is an im- 
possibility for the hedgehog. The food of the hedgehog consists not of cow's 
milk, but insects, frogs, mice and snakes. I once placed a snake in the same 
box with a hedgehog. The hedgehog gave the snake a severe bite, and then 
rolled itself up, this process being repeated until the spine of the snake was 

375 



376 THE STORY OF THE HEDGEHOG. 

broken in several places ; it then began at the tail, and ate the snake gradually, 
as one would eat a radish. 

The hedgehog also feeds on earthworms, slugs and snails, and in destroy- 
ing the latter it may certainly be regarded as a friend to* the gardener. The 
consumption of earthworms is performed in a rather curious manner. These 
animals are seized when they are enjoying the damp freshness of the air out 
of their holes, in summer evenings, and slowly passed into the mouth of 
their enemy from one end to the other, apparently by the simple process of 
mastication with the molar teeth, the unconsumed portion of the worm being 
constantly transferred from one side of the mouth to> the other, soi that both 
sides of the jaw may come into play. This must be an unpleasant operation 
for the worm,, much as its captor may enjoy it. It is uncertain whether the 
larger snails are eaten by the hedgehog, but the smaller species certainly form 
a portion of its diet. 

The new-born young are almost naked, and their imperfect spines are 
soft, flexible and white, although rapidly hardening in the course of a few 
days. They are at first totally blind, and quite incapable of rolling themselves 
up. The nest in which the young are born is carefully constructed, and is 
said to be always protected from: rain by an efficient roof. In winter the 
European hedgehog hibernates completely, laying up no store of food, but 
retiring to a nest of moss and leaves, where, rolled up in a ball, it lies torpid till 
awakened by the returning warmth of spring. 

The flesh of the hedgehog is said to be good eating, and the Gypsies fre- 
quently make it a part of their diet, as do the people in some parts of the 
continent. 

There is a peculiar method of preparing the animal for food, strongly re- 
minding one of the earth ovens used by the Polynesians. The hedgehog is 
simply wrapped up in a mass of clay and put on the fire. In process of time 
the clay is thoroughly baked, and cracks open, when the hedgehog is supposed 
to be cooked. On opening the clay, the skin comes off with it, while the iri- 
sides of the animal have formed themselves into a hard ball, and are taken 
out entire. By this method of cooking the juices are retained, and not suffered 
to dissipate, as they would if it were roasted. 

The common hedgehog is characterized by the short and almost imper- 
ceptible neck, the pig-like snout, from which it derives its popular name, and 
also by the shortness of its limbs. Exclusive of the short naked tail, which 
measures about one and one-half inches, an average-sized hedgehog is about 
ten inches in length. The great peculiarity of all the hedgehogs is the power 



THE STORY OF THE HEDGEHOG. 



377 



they possess of rolling themselves up into* a ball-like form, presenting an array 
of spines, impenetrable to the great majority of other animals. This rolling- 
tip process is effected by the aid of an extraordinary development of a layer 
of muscles found beneath the skin. When rolled up, the head and feet are 
tucked inwards, so that only the spines are exposed; and it requires a bold 
dog or fox to attack a hedgehog when in this condition. Under the micro- 
scope the spine is seen to be marked by a number of parallel grooves. 

Hedgehogs are represented by five distinct varieties in India. It is re- 
markable that while one of these hedgehogs is found in Madras, no* repre- 




EUROPEAN HEDGEHOGS. 



sentative is recorded from the Central Provinces and Bengal, the other species 
not occurring till we reach the North- West Provinces, the Punjab, etc. But 
little is known of the habits of these Indian species, and nothing as to their 
breeding; although it is probable that in both these respects they conform 
closely to their European cousin. The long-eared Afghan hedgehog common 
in the neighborhood of Kandahar and Quetta, hibernates, but the species from 
the Punjab and Southern India are active at all seasons of the year, thus 
showing how absolutely dependent is the habit of hibernation upon climate. 
The collared hedgehog found in the plains of North- Western India, inhabits 



378 THE STORY OF THE HEDGEHOG. 

sandy country, hiding in holes beneath thorny bushes or in tufts of grass 
during the day, feeding chiefly on insects, especially a species of Blaps, and 
also on lizards and snails. It makes a grunting noise when irritated, and 
when touched suddenly jerks up its back so as to throw its spines forward, 
Imaking at the same time a sound like a puff from a pair of bellows. The 
Afghan hedgehog feeds on the slugs and snails so> common in the fields around 
Kandahar, as well as worms, insects and lizards. It hides during the day in 
holes; and hibernates from the end of October or beginning of November till 
February. 

Young hedgehogs are pretty little creatures. The mother generally pro- 
duces from four to six at a birth. In color, they are, at first, a rose-white. 
When they get to> be the size of a hen's egg, their prickles are well developed. 
The mother nurses them for a short time only, and then leaves them to' shift 
for themselves, which they are well able to do. 

Hedgehogs are particularly fond of cockroaches, and people in England 
often keep them in the kitchen to destroy these pests. 

I once saw a hedgehog roll itself into' a ball and drop a distance of four- 
teen feet into an area way without doing itself the least damage. This gives 
a very good idea of the strength of the prickles in its skin. 




STORY OF THE WILD GOAT. 



I have hunted the wild goat in the Rocky Mountains, in equatorial Africa, 
in bleak Siberia and in the lofty Himalayas. In each of these widety sep>- 
arated districts the animal shows the same general characteristics and the 
hunter must needs use great caution if he hopes to< secure his quarry. 

The so-called goat of the Rocky Mountains is about the size of a large 
sheep*, and averages one hundred pounds in weight. It has very short and 
stout legs, terminating in broad and blunted hoofs, pointed ears and jet black 
horns, curving backwards, and ringed for about half their length, but smooth 
above this. The body is covered with a long coat of white hair, which is 
nearly straight, and falls on the sides of the body and limbs, but is erect along 
the middle of the back, and as it becomes longer over the withers and haunches 
the animal looks as though it had two humps. Beneath the hair there is a 
thick coat of wool. In length the horns vary from six to* ten and one-half 
inches. 

The range of this animal extends through the Rocky Mountains from 
about latitude thirty-six degrees in California at least as far north as latitude 
sixty-two degrees. I believe that it will be found as far north as the moun- 
tains reach. It is extremely abundant in British Columbia, ranging from its 
southern boundary to the watershed of the Arctic Ocean, and from the coast- 
line to the Rockies. Here, amid nature's wildest scenes, amid storm-swept 

379 



380 



THE STORY OF THE WILD GOAT. 



canons and beetling- crags, amid steel-blue glaciers and snowy peaks; where 
the silence is seldom broken save by the rush of mountain torrent, the howling 
of the storm, or the crashing of the treacherous avalanche — here, far removed 
from the trail of the ordinary hunter, the mountain-goat, solitary in its habits, 
and contented with its chaotic and gloomy surroundings, increases and mul- 
tiplies. 

Its sure-footedness and its boldness are proverbial, as is its unpleasant 




SPIRAL-HORNED GOAT OF AFGHANISTAN. 



odor. The power possessed by the goats of ascending very steep heights is 
marvelous. On more than one occasion I have seen — contrary to the teaching 
of ^sopi — that when two individuals have met on a path too narrow for both 
to pass, one has lain down in order that the other might go over his back. 

The Spanish wild goat inhabits the Pyrenees, the ranges of Central Spain 
and the mountains of Portugal. The animal seeks the highest ridges and 
peaks of the mountains during the summer, but in winter the doe comes to 



THE -STORY OF THE WILD GOAT. 



381 



the valleys, often to the villages. Far up among the snow-covered heights 
can be found the old bucks, who disdain seeking shelter from the storms. 

When feeding or reposing, sentinels are placed in commanding positions 
to apprise the flock of approaching danger, which they do by means of a loud 
snort, upon which the whole company at once takes to flight. 




ALPINE WILD GOATS. 



Probably the most active of the wild goats is the pasang of Persia, from 
which species the various breeds' of domestic goats are derived. This species 
has long scimitar-like horns, much compressed, with the front edge forming a 
sharp keel. It frequents craggy and rocky districts, taking leaps of great 
length with unerring precision. In spite of the constant persecution to which 



382 THE STORY OF THE WILD GOAT. 

it is subjected, it exists in vast numbers. On the Kuh-i-barf, a not very lofty 
or extensive hill, constantly shot over, near Shiraz, I once counted over a 
hundred in a herd, which had been driven together by two days' consecutive 
fusillade. It is marvelously shy and wary. In my earlier residence in Persia 
I spent many a, weary day after them, but never managed to bag a buck. Even 
native sportsmen, though admirable shots and thoroughly familiar with 
every nook and cranny of the hills, rarely get one by fair stalking; most of 
those killed being obtained by building a wall of loose stones near water and 
shooting the goats when drinking. The males drink in the morning and 
evening only, but the females, in hot weather, at least, drink also at midday. 
Sixty miles north of Shiraz I came suddenly upon a herd of twenty or more 
does and kids, drinking by the roadside, a couple of hundred yards from the 
foot of the hills. Except when alarmed, bucks and does seem, to keep apart. 

In Baluchistan these goats inhabit barren rocky hills, but in parts of Asia 
Minor they are found on forest-clad uplands. In such localities they may 
often be found within hearing of the drovers on the roads, or even, of the 
railways ; but this confidence is accompanied by exceeding watchfulness. The 
number in a flock in these districts is generally from four to> ten, and at the 
time of my observations bucks and does were found together. Sentinels are 
almost always posted to warn the flock, these being relieved at short intervals ; 
and it appears that this sentry-duty is undertaken according to seniority, the 
youngest animals commencing first, and the oldest buck taking his turn last. 
In Asia Minor pasang are hunted both by driving and by stalking; but they 
are so cunning that the former method is not generally very successful. The 
Cabulis hunt them on the lower ground of Afghanistan with greyhounds. 

The bezoar-stone, so; highly esteemed in Persia as an antidote to poison 
and a remedy for several diseases, is a concretion found in the stomach of the 
pasang, from whence it derives its old European name of Pazen, or' Pasen. 

The wild goats of the Isle of Giura are probably derived from a domestic 
race, perhaps crossed with the pasang. Goats have also run wild in many 
other places, more especially mountainous islands like St. Helena, Tavolara 
near Sardinia, and Juan Fernandez. In St. Helena these wild goats have 
completely destroyed a large portion of the native flora, and this has resulted 
in the disappearance of much of the fauna. Goats were introduced by the 
Spaniards into Juan Fernandez in the year 1563. These soon increased 
enormously, and in order to- diminish their numbers dogs were subsequently 
let loose, and likewise ran wild. 



AARD-VARK, OR ANT-BEAR 

The Ugly and Ungraceful Earth-Hog — Has a Long Prehensile Tongue — Found on the Roose- 
velt Hunting Grounds in East Africa. 



During the rainy season the high and extraordinary large termite-hills 
found on the East African velt are visited at night by a strange animal, which 
spends its days underground. It is a grotesquely formed creature with the 
snout of a pig, the head of an ant-bear, the ears of an ass, the legs of an arma- 
dillo, and the body of a kangaroo — a kind of a composite animal such as the 
imagination of fanciful artists, painters and writers may conceive. With its 
long tail and sharp claws it beats and tears to pieces the ant-hills, and with 
its long and sticky tongue it collects myriads of ants and swallows them. 

The earths, or burrows, which are often very deep and wide-spreading, 
are a constant danger to hunters, as the Colonel and his companions more than 
once had a chance to observe when riding over the velt or stalking, for they 
often suddenly felt themselves sinking into the ground up to their waists, as 
the openings were frequently concealed beneath bushes and difficult to avoid. 

When in South Africa among the Boers, I frequently shot those ugly and 
ungainly animals the Boers call aard-varks, or, in English, earth-pigs. It 
is not always easy to get a shot at one, for they are keen of hearing, and rush 
to their burrows at the slightest unusual sound. When unable to reach their 
burrows, they dig into* the ground where they happen to be, and they are so 
powerful that they can soon sink their large bodies out of sigliL even when 
the ground is hard and sun-baked. 

The body of the aard-vark, which is usually almost naked, but sometimes 
thinly clad with bristly hairs, is heavy and ungainly. The long muzzle of the 
head is almost a trunk; the ears are of great length, and the tongue can be 
extended like that of the pangolin, although it is not so> worm-like. The skin 
is of remarkable thickness, its general color being yellowish brown, with a 
tinge of red on the back and sides, while the head and under-parts are light 
reddish yellow ; and the hind-quarters, the root of the tail, and the limbs brown. 
A full-grown aard-vark measures a little over six feet in total length. 

The teeth of the aard-vark differ from those of any other known animal. 
The Cape aard-vark inhabits South and South-Eastern Africa ; it is replaced 
in North-Eastern Africa by the Ethiopian aard-vark; the former being dis- 
tinguished by the thicker coating of hair, more especially on the back and 
flanks, as well as by the thicker and shorter tail, and the. longer- head and ears. 

383 



384 



THE STORY OF THE AARD-VARK. 



The aard-varks feed exclusively on termites and ants. In South Africa 
their deep burrows are generally constructed in the neighborhood of the tall 
mounds formed by the termites ; and, in the old days, before these animals 
were hunted for their skins, it used to be said that wherever termite-hiils were 
numerous, there an aard-vark might confidently be expected. Wherever these 
animals are abundant, a number of half-formed holes are seen in the ground 
and on the sides of the ant-hills, which have been commenced and abandoned. 
Aard-varks usually spend the whole of the day asleep in their burrows, but 







e»P 






THE AARD-VARK AND ITS HABITS. 



may occasionally be seen abroad in the early morning. In digging, they work 
with their fore-feet, and throw out huge clods of earth between their hind-legs. 
But little definitely is known as to their breeding-habits, although it has been 
ascertained that the Ethiopian species gives birth during May or June to a 
single offspring. At birth the young is naked and flesh-colored ; and is suckled 
by its parent for a long period. 




STORY OF THE PANGOLIN. 



In Africa, south of the Sahara desert and in some parts of India, I have 
often come across an animal which always made me think of a huge pine cone 
supplied with a head and legs. This animal is known as the pangolin, which 
feeds upon ants, although belonging to a different family from the true ant- 
eaters. The whole upper surface of the body, the sides and the tail are covered 
with large overlapping horny scales. The limbs are short, with five toes. Its 
long worm-like tongue is capable of being extended a great distance from its 
mouth. 

The largest pangolins reach a length of six feet. They are burrowing 
animals, and are only abroad at night. They can roll themselves in a ball like 
the other ant-eaters, and when they are thus rolled up their muscular strength 
is something enormous. 

Asia is inhabited by three species of the family, namely, the Indian pango- 
lin, confined to India and Ceylon ; the Chinese pangolin, ranging from, Nipal 
and Assam to China ; and the Malayan pangolin, inhabiting the regions to the 
westward of the Bay of Bengal as far as Celebes, and also occurring in North- 
Eastern India. 

385 



386 



THE STORY OF THE PANGOLIN. 



The habits of all the three kinds are similar, although the Malayan species 
>is probably less of a burrower than the others. The Indian pangolin dwells 
cither among the crevices and clefts of rocks, or in burrows of its own con- 
struction; such burrows extending to a depth of from eight to twelve feet 
below the surface, and ending in a large chamber, which may be as much as 
six feet in diameter. Here a pair of these animals take up their abode, and in 
the winter or early spring give birth to their young. The young, which are 
one or two in number, are covered with soft scales at birth, which harden on 
the second day, but it does not appear to be ascertained whether they are born 
blind. When inhabited, the entrance to the burrow is stopped with earth; 
and it is rarely that its occupants are seen abroad after sunrise. The food 




THE PANGOLIN. 



consists chiefly of termites ; the pangolin tearing open the nests of these insects 
with its powerful front claws, and thrusting its long glutinous tongue into 
their runs. The tongue is rapidly withdrawn with a swarm of the white ants 
clinging to it. In captivity pangolins will readily eat finely-chopped raw meat, 
hard-boiled eggs, and rice. Their stomachs have a somewhat gizzard-like 
structure; and frequently contain a few small pebbles, probably introduced 
to aid in triturating the food. In captivity pangolins drink freely by rapidly 
extending and withdrawing the tongue. I doubt whether this habit is natural 
to them, as they are often found in places where there is no water. When 
irritated, pangolins will give vent to a hissing sound, but at other times they 
are silent. 




THE STORY OF THE TENREC. 



There lives in Madagascar an insect-eating animal which has many of 
the characteristics of the hedgehog. The name tenrec is given the group, 
which' comprises several species. They are defended with spines, and can 
roll themselves. into a ball as the hedgehog does. I have watched the creature 
defend itself against the attack of a dog and do* it so successfully that the 
dog retired howling with pain. 

These animals are a great pest to> the agriculturists of Madagascar, owing 
to the damage they inflict on the rice crops by burrowing in the earth beneath 
the young plants in search of worms and insects. 

They pass one-half of the year is a state of torpidity. About May or June 
they dig themselves holes, in which they sleep until December, with their 
heads comfortably tucked away between the hind legs. Their burrows are 
generally betrayed by the presence of a small heap of earth or moss thrown 
up at the entrance. The animals at this time are very fat, and are regarded 
as great delicacies by the natives of Madagascar. The inhabitants hunt the 
tenrecs with dogs, trained expressly for the purpose. They live chiefly in 
the mountains, in places covered with mosses, ferns and bushes. Their food 
consists principally of earthworms, which they rout out by means of their 
feet and pointed snouts, using the latter after the fashion of a pig. Insects 
also form a part of their diet ; and like the hedgehogs, they feed upon certain 

387 



388 



THE STORY OF THE TENREC. 



In captivity they will eat raw meat, and are also said to be 
They sleep nearly all the day, and come forth in full activity 



fruits and roots, 
fond of bananas, 
only at night. 

The true tenrecs have a body much longer than the hedge-hogs, and 
their bristles are less rigid, the spines being covered with soft, silky hair. 
The head is shaped like that of the pouched animals. It is found not only 




THE TENREC AND ITS HABITS. 



in Madagascar, but also in the islands of Bourbon and Maurice, but it was 
probably carried to the latter island by the colonists. It is tailless, about 
twelve inches long, and of a fawn color. The second species has rather 
strong prickles, and is of a grayish-black color. 

The spines of the tenrec are like stiff pointed bristles, and are by no means 



so strong as those of the hedgehog. 



HUNTING THE GAZELLE 

Colonel Roosevelt Secures a Thompson Gazelle for the National Museum — Many Varieties 
of the Gazelle Family — East Africa's Most Graceful Animal. 



Riding along the vast plains around Sir Alfred Pease's ranch Mr. Roose- 
velt and his companions saw herds of hartebeest and troops of the smaller 
varieties of the gazelle family, but the absence of trees made stalking very 
difficult, and the shy denizens of the velt gradually* succeeded in getting away 
before our hunters could get within shooting distance. 

Mr. Roosevelt was especially anxious to kill one of the beautiful Grant's 
gazelles for the National Museum in Washington, but this wary and light- 
footed animal eluded all his attempts and after several hours' exhausting pur- 
suit he had to give it up for the time being. But he succeeded in shooting a 
Thompson gazelle, a smaller variety of the great antelope family. 

The two kinds of gazelles most frequently seen by the American hunting 
expedition in East Africa were the Thompson gazelle and the Grant gazelle. 
The latter one is a beautiful large animal and was discovered in i860 by 
Grant in the vicinity of the Victoria Nyanza, while the smaller variety killed 
by Mr. Roosevelt was not "known to European naturalists until the English 
traveler, Thompson, found it twenty-five years ago. 

The stately male Grant gazelle is adorned with long and beautifully bent 
horns, those of the female also being long but not quite so heavy. This species 
is spread all over British East Africa and runs in herds of many animals. 
The herds are in general separated according to> sex; the female herds, how- 
ever, mostly being accompanied by one or more bucks. The Grant gazelle 
inhabits the open plains, avoiding the thick forests, but frequents localities 
thinly covered with bushes. It feeds not only on grass, but also on leaves 
and fruits. 

While the Grant gazelle is very shy and cautious still it is not entirely safe 
to pursue it too incautiously. The hunter may come dangerously near to 
being impaled on its pointed horns. A famous naturalist narrowly escaped 
this fate a short time ago. Resting in the neighborhood of the Meru moun- 
tain he suddenly saw, in the distance, a single gazelle. He stalked it, and 
fired at it, at a distance of about nine-hundred feet, but only wounded the ani- 
mal. He was greatly astonished when he saw it running towards him instead 
of from him as he had expected. He fortunately succeeded in killing the en- 
raged animal by a second shot. 

The smaller variety known as the Thompson gazelle, which was killed by 

389 



390 HUNTING THE GAZELLE. 

Mr. Roosevelt, resembles the Grant gazelle in form and color, but is much 
smaller. It lives in the open grass-grown plain, is slow to realize its danger 
and will allow a hunter to approach within three hundred feet. The male has 
long and strong horns; those of the female are poorly developed and ill- 
shaped. When running away from an enemy these animals carry their heads 
erect only at the start, but in full flight they lower them considerably. One 
may often see these pygmy gazelles, which feed exclusively on grass, pastur- 
ing among- the tame cattle of the Masai tribe. The natives abstain from eat- 
ing their flesh and seldom hunt them. An almost constant movement of the 
comparatively long tail to and fro characterizes the Thompson gazelle and 
enables one to recognize the animal at a great distance. 

The gazelle is occasionally discerned in company with gnus and other ani- 
mals. In British East Africa near the Nakuru and Elmenteita lakes, thou- 
sands of them are found. These pygmy gazelles help to bring life into the 
desert, salt and natron steppe of this vast country. May they long continue 
to do so, says a distinguished traveler and nature-friend. 

' One of the most graceful and beautiful species of this family of animals 
is the giraffe gazelle. Imagine a diminutive giraffe, exceedingly slender and 
graceful, of brownish color, provided with horns and capable of standing 
like a goat on its hind legs. Thus appears the giraffe gazelle, or greenuk. 
It is widely distributed and has been observed in the remotest regions of the 
steppe of East Africa. The male is provided with peculiarly-shaped horns; 
the female has none. 

Near Nairobi and at the foot of Mount Kenia the American hunters often 
noticed in the bright light of the setting sun, an animal rising on its hind 
legs to browse on the leaves of the mimosas. At first sight they thought 
the animal to be a giraffe; for in the clear atmosphere of the steppe it is 
not easy to judge the distance and size of an object. They soon realized 
that they were mistaken and that they had before them the greenuk — the 
giraffe gazelle. They secured several specimens of this rare and little known 
animal. 

The giraffe gazelle can live far from water and is very hard to hunt. It 
manages to exist in the desert thorn wilderness and is able to find enough 
food in the midst of a dry and very scanty vegetation. This gazelle avoids 
forests and parts of the steppe with luxuriant vegetation. It spends the day 
in the shade of acacia bushes, and seeks its food early in the morning or late 
in the evening. 



392 HUNTING THE GAZELLE. 

When suspecting danger the animal stands for a moment erect and 
motionless, as if cast in bronze. Then it bends its long neck so that it forms 
almost a line with its body and moves noiselessly over the ground to the 
nearest cover. To the pursuing hunter the animal suddenly seems to have 
vanished into the ground, but from a higher point it can be seen gliding along 
like a shadow. No wonder that the giraffe gazelle has so long escaped the 
observation of many African travelers. 

The American hunters found stalking the giraffe gazelle very difficult 
and highly fatiguing in the thorny hunting grounds, which are its favorite 
haunts. Progress is slow and the animal is apt to> notice the hunter long 
before he has become aware of its presence. Then he must fire a chance shot 
or wait until the giraffe gazelle raises its head above the thorns. They used 
to stalk the giraffe gazelle in the heat of the day, when it took its siesta. If 
one does not mind the heat, one is often well repaid for the trouble. In the 
neighborhood of the extinct Kilimanjaro volcano a sportsman once killed, 
within a few hours, five bucks and sighted fifteen does, but spared them. 

To the above we add the following interesting facts. 

The gazelle is regarded as the embodiment of grace and beauty, and is 
celebrated in song and story. It is usually of a sandy color and has a white 
streak on the side of the face from the base of the horn nearly to the nose, 
thus cutting off a dark triangular patch in the middle of the forehead, while 
the streak itself is bordered by a dark line. The horns, which are generally 
present in both sexes, are recurved and completely ringed throughout the 
greater part of their length. Most of the gazelles do> not exceed thirty inches 
in height, although the mohr reaches thirty-six inches. There are about 
twenty-one living species. 

The gazelle so famous in Oriental poetry inhabits Arabia and Syria. Its 
eyes are very large, dark and lustrous, so that the Oriental poets love to com- 
pare the eyes of a woman to> those of a gazelle, just as Homer constantly ap- 
plied the epithet ox-eyed to the more majestic goddesses, such as Juno and 
Minerva. It is easily tamed when young, and is frequently seen domesticated 
in the court yards of houses in Syria. Its swiftness is SO' great that even a 
greyhound cannot overtake it, and the hunters are forced to> make use of 
hawks, which are trained to' strike at the head of the gazelle, and thus con- 
fuse it and retard its speed, so as to< permit the dogs to come up. The color 
of this pretty little animal is a dark yellowish brown, fading into white on 
the under parts. 

One of the most important members of the gazelle family is the South 



394 THE STORY OF THE GAZELLE. 

African springbok. The springbok derives its name from its habit of sud- 
denly leaping in the air; and is remarkable both for the vast numbers in 
which it formerly occurred, and for its periodical migrations. I was once a 
spectator of the remarkable scene produced by one of these migrations. For 
about two hours before dawn I had been lying awake in my wagon, listening 
to the grunting of the buck within two hundred yards of me ; imagining that 




THE GOITRED GAZELLE. 



some large herd of springboks was feeding beside my camp, but, rising when 
it was light and looking about me, I beheld the ground to the northward of 
my camp actually covered with a dense living mass of sprinkboks, marching 
slowly and steadily along. They extended from an opening in a long range 
of hills on the west, through which they continued pouring like the flood of 
some great river, to a ridge about a mile to the north-east, over which they 



THE STORY OF THE GAZELLE. 



395 



disappeared — the breadth they covered might have been somewhere about half 
a mile. I stood upon the fore-chest of my wagon for nearly two hours, lost in 
astonishment at the novel and wonderful scene before me, and had some 
difficulty in convincing myself that it was. a reality which I beheld, and not 
the wild and exaggerated picture of a hunter's dream. 

The goa or Thibetan gazelle is distinguished by the white disc around the 
tail, the long winter-coat, short ears and tail, the greatly curved horns and the 
uniform color of the face. The height of the animal is twenty-four inches; 




PHOTOGRAPH OF MALE GIRAFFE GAZELLE. AN EXTREMELY BEAUTIFUL AND RARE SPECIES, RECENTLY 

FOUND IN EAST AFRICA. 



and the largest recorded horns measure fifteen and three-quarter inches in 
length; the number of rings varying from twenty to thirty. This gazelle 
inhabits the Thibetan plateau at elevations of from thirteen thousand to eight- 
een thousand feet, and goes in small parties of from two or three to a dozen. 
It is less shy than other species. 

Another of the true gazelles is characterized by the white of the rump 
extending forward in an angle into the fawn-color of the haunches; both 
sexes having horns, which are frequently longer than in the other groups ; the 
animals themselves being also relatively large. 



396 THE STORY OF THE GAZELLE. v< 

Its swiftness is such that it can but seldom be taken with dogs ; but it does 
not leap in the air like the dorcas. This gazelle keeps much to> waste ground, 
especially where that is broken up by ravines, but it is seldom seen on alluvial 
plains, and it haunts cultivation less than the [Indian] antelope. I have fre- 
quently found it among scattered bushes or thin tree-jungle, and it may be met 
with on undulating ground even on the top of* hills; it is commonly found 
amongst sand-hills, and is nowhere so abundant as in parts of the Indian 
desert. It lives on grass and the leaves of bushes, and, I believe, never drinks, 
for it is common in tracts where there is no> water except from deep wells. 

A peculiar gazelle, known as the gerenuk, or Waller's gazelle, inhabits 
Eastern Africa, and is remarkable for the great length of its neck, which has 
been likened to a miniature giraffe. 

The gerenuk is found all over the Somali country in small families, never 
in large herds, and generally in scattered bush, ravines and rocky ground. I 
have never seen it in the cedar-forests, nor in the treeless plains. Gerenuk 
are not necessarily found near water ; in fact, generally in stony ground with 
a sprinkling of thorn-jungle. Its gait is peculiar. When first seen, a buck 
gerenuk will generally be standing motionless, head well up, looking at the 
intruder, and trusting to its invisibility. Then the head dives under the bushes, 
and the animal goes off at a long, crouching trot, stopping now and again 
behind some bush to gaze. The trot is awkward-looking, and very like that 
of a camel; the gerenuk seldom gallops, and its pace is never very fast. In 
the whole shape o>f the head and neck, and in the slender lower jaw, there is 
a marked resemblance between the gerenuk and the dibatag. It subsists more 
by browsing than by grazing, and it may not unfrequently be observed stand- 
ing up on its hind-legs, with outstretched neck, and its fore-feet resting 
against the trunk of: a tree, in order to pluck the foliage. 

The goitred gazelle is rather a heavy animal, found in Eastern Siberia, 
Chinese Mongolia and Western Thibet. It also) inhabits Persia, and a fa- 
vorite sport of Persian noblemen is to' hunt it with the chita, or trained hunting 
leopard. 

A beautiful species of gazelle is the Dorcas, found in Egypt and Barbary, 
where it lives in large troops upon the borders of the cultivated country, and 
also in the deserts. When pursued it flies to> some distance, then stops to gaze 
a moment at the hunters, and again renews its flight. The flock, when 
attacked _ collectively, disperse in all directions, but soon unite, and when 
brought to bay defend themselves with courage and obstinacy, uniting in a 
close circle, with the females and fawns in the center, and presenting their 



THE STORY OF THE GAZELLE. 



397 



horns at all points to their enemies ; yet, notwithstanding their courage, they 
are the common prey of the lion and panther, and are hunted with great per- 
severance by the Arabs and Bedouins of the desert. When taken young they 
are easily domesticated, and soon become familiar. This animal is frequently 
cut upon the monuments of Egypt and Nubia. 

Referring again to the beautiful Arabian gazelle, or as it is properly called, 




RED-FRONTED GAZELLE. 



ariel gazelle, it may be said that it is still hunted by the Arabs for its flesh, 
which is excellent, as it was by the ancient Egyptians. 

On the eastern frontier of Syria are several places allotted to the hunting 
of this animal, or rather for its entrapment or destruction. An open space on 
the plain, about one mile and a half square, is enclosed on three sides by a 
wall of loose stones too high for the gazelle to leap over. Gaps are left in 
different, parts of the wall, and at each gap a deep ditch is sunk on the outside. 



398 THE STORY OF THE GAZELLE. 

The inclosure is situated near some rivulet or spring to which the^gazelles 
resort in summer. When the sport is to* begin, many peasants assemble and 
watch till they see a herd of gazelles advancing from a distance toward the 
inclosure, into which they drive them. The gazelles, frightened by the shouts 
of the people and the discharge of the fire-arms, endeavor to leap over the wall, 
but can only effect this at the gaps, where they fall into the ditch outside, and 
are easily taken, sometimes by hundreds. The chief of the herd always leaps 
first, and the others follow him one by one. The gazelles thus captured are 
immediately killed, and their flesh sold to> the Arabs and neighboring Fellahs. 
Of the skin a kind of parchment is made, and used to> cover the small drum 
with which. the Syrians accompany some musical instruments or the voice. 

Referring again to the trek of the Springboks: The migration is called 
a trek bokken. So great is the number of animals in these migrations that 
those which happen to get into the rear of the troop are lean and half-starved 
before the migration is concluded, from the advanced ranks cropping the 
scanty pastures almost bare, and thus leaving those behind nearly destitute 
of food; but when the journey is concluded, and the troop begins to retrace 
its steps northward, those which formed the van during the advance are 
necessarily in the rear returning, soon lose their plump condition, and are 
in their turn subjected to want and starvation. During these migrations 
the herds are closely followed by lions, panthers, hyenas and wild dogs, 
which hang upon their flanks and destroy great numbers of them. There 
is perhaps no spectacle in nature more inspiring than a flock of these beauti- 
ful gazelles enlivening the dreary brown karroos of South Africa with then 
graceful motions; now leaping perpendicularly upward to the height of su 
or seven feet, displaying at the same time the snowy-white marks on theil 
croups, and anon flying over the desert with the speed of a whirlwind. 



THE CAFFRE-CAT 

The Ancestor of the Domestic Cat— A Native of Africa and Asia — Worshipped by the 
Egyptians. 

Among the other smaller beasts of prey which the American hunting 
expedition came across in East Africa were also a number of wild-cats. 
This animal frequents long grass, reeds and bushes, especially in the neighbor- 
hood of small streams and rivers. It is strictly nocturnal in its habits and 
very seldom seen in daytime, and then only by chance. 

While hunting elephants on the western side of the Kilimanjaro 1 I saw, 
says an African traveler, again and again, a shy black cat. From my stand 
I could often see it far below me. jumping gracefully over the dew-laden 
grasses and the branches which blocked its way; but before I could take aim 
it always disappeared into the thicket. For many nights it avoided the traps 
I set to catch it. One morning, however, my taxidermist surprised me with 
the welcome news, "We have got her." Saying this he held out to me a fine 
serval, or black cat. She appeared to be uniformly black, but, holding her 
against the light, I could see the darker spots shining through. On the plains 
of the steppe I met, though very rarely, the grey wild-cats. 

The caffre cat is about the size of a large domestic cat, and is generally 
of a yellowish color, darker on the back, and paler on the under-parts. The 
body is marked with faint pale stripes, which assume, however, on the limbs 
the form of distinct dark horizontal bands; and the tail, which is relatively 
long, is also more or less distinctly ringed towards its tip, where it is com- 
pletely black. The sides of the face are marked by JwO' horizontal streaks. 

The caffre cat is found throughout Africa, from the Cape of Algiers and 
Egypt, and also' extending into Southwestern Asia in Syria and Arabia. In 
past times it also> ranged into Southeastern Europe. At the period when the 
caffre cat lived in Gibraltar, Spain was doubtless connected by land with 
Africa. These cats were held sacred by the ancient Egyptians, and enor- 
mous numbers of their bodies were embalmed and preserved in tombs and 
pits. 

Darwin considered that the origin of the domestic cat could not be deter- 
mined with certainty; and concluded by remarking that whether domestic 
cats have descended from several distinct species, or have only been modified 
by occasional crosses, their fertility, so far as is known, is unimpaired. 

399 



400 



THE STORY OF THE CAFF RE CAT. 



That the ancient Egyptians had succeeded in taming thoroughly the cats 
of which the mummified bodies are found in large numbers is perfectly well 
ascertained. This is indeed demonstrated by a painting in the British Museum, 
representing a fowling scene. It appears to have been the custom for the 
fowler to enter upon such expeditions accompanied by some of the female 
members of his family. Embarking on board a boat, with a few decoy-birds 
and a trained cat, they proceeded to such parts of the river as were fringed 
with dense masses of the tall papyrus-reed. Waterfowl of various species 




THE CAFFRE CAT, WORSHIPED BY EGYPTIANS. 



swarmed in these rushy covers ; and, by the number of nests with eggs and 
young usually represented, we are doubtless to infer that the possession of this 
sort of stock was no less desired than that of the birds themselves. The cat, 
strange as it appears, was certainly taught to seize upon the birds. It is 
probable also that the repugnance of this animal to wet her feet having been 
overcome by training, she was accustomed to fetch such birds as fell into the 
water. It is interesting to find the cat domesticated at so early a period. 



CLOSING INCIDENTS OF THE 
ROOSEVELT AFRICAN HUNT. 

Search for the White Ehinoceros and Other Bare Big and Small Game — Interest- 
ing Adventures in Wildest and Darkest Africa, Uganda ahd^ Belgian Congo — Down the 

Nile. 



When Colonel Roosevelt and the Smithsonian scientific expedition of 
naturalists and explorers arrived at Kampala, the native capital of the Uganda 
Protectorate, four days before Christmas, they had completed the first. stage 
of their great enterprise and entered upon the second. They now left behind 
them such indications of civilization and progress as railroads and telegraphs 
and entered wildest Africa, where they had to rely on' their own feet for loco- 
motion and could not even expect to hear from the outside world by mail. 

The end of Colonel Roosevelt's last trip in the British East African Pro- 
tectorate had been spectacular. This safari trip, which was the fourth one 
made out of Nairobi, gave our ex-President and his party an opportunity to 
witness an exciting hunt at A. E. Hoy's farm at Singoi, in the Guaso 
Nguisho country, and the spearing of a lion by Nandi warriors. 

As soon as Colonel Roosevelt had arrived on the back of his favorite 
horse, Tranquility, followed by a long stream of porters, which came wind- 
ing across the veldt toward the station at Nairobi, looking like a string of 
ants, the stars and stripes being held aloft by a giant native, and the sound of 
horns making strange discords with the chanting of the weird and elusive 
safari song, the game of cornering an angry lion by native spearmen began. 

The band of seventy almost naked men, with their long sharp spears, at- 
tended by the chosen spectators, the latter being mounted, proceeded down a 
long valley where the grass was thick and thorn trees lined the edges. 

Soon a lion was observed not more than 400 yards in front. Immedi- 
ately the warriors gave chase, and in less than two' miles they had rounded 
up the king of the wilderness. The horsemen then approached, and it was 
seen that the lion at bay was a full-grown, black-maned one. 

The spearmen began their task of surrounding their quarry. Every man 

401 



402 CLOSING INCIDENTS. 

went to his allotted position, and the circle slowly closed in on the snarling 
beast, which swished its tail and kept up a continual roaring. 

The warriors drew to within some twenty yards of the lion, and the col- 
onel and the horsemen closed up to see the kill, yet remained at a sufficient 
distance so as not to interfere with the spearmen's movements. Three times 
the lion made a savage charge at the now stationary warriors, but stopped 
short each time, with mane bristling, roaring in impotent rage at its tormen- 
tors. 

Again the attacking party advanced to within ten yards of their victim. 
One last desperate effort and the lion drove directly at the line, only to 
fall with ten spears quivering in its body. But in that brief moment it man- 
aged to drag down one of the natives, its claws sinking into the man's flesh. 

The death of the king of beasts seemed to awaken all the fire in the 
warriors' blood. They began a dance of triumph around the body, waving 
their blood-stained spears, some of which were bent by the force of the shock ; 
holding their shields above their heads and shouting forth blood-curdling yells 
in the excess of their savage joy over the victory. 

In the meantime the injured man was given medical attention. He bore 
the pain of his wounds without a sign of concern. He who first had jabbed 
his spear through the lion joined in the dance at the start, but soon retired to 
a distance, where he' seated himself, apparently indifferent to the antics of 
his fellows. He now was a leader of men and must therefore not show sign 
that he had done anything out of the ordinary. 

This exciting game formed the closing scene of the colonel's safari in 
British East Africa. He immediately took the train for Port Florence and 
proceeded to Entebbe by steamer on Victoria Nyanza as related in a previous 
chapter. 

The party stayed only over night in Entebbe, where they were enter- 
tained by the British governor of the Protectorate. The next day Roosevelt 
and Kermit were taken to Kampala in motor cars, while the other members 
of the expedition arrived by steamer. 

Kampala is located on the western shore of Victoria Nyanza on a dom- 
ineering elevation. The colonel was met by a magnificent sight. The whole 
brow and sides of the hill were covered with gigantic grass huts neatly 
thatched and fenced all around with the tall yellow reeds of the Uganda 
tiger-grass. In the center of this vast conglomeration of huts the regal pal- 
ace, a building of extraordinary dimensions and neatness, raised its majestic 



CLOSING INCIDENTS 403 

dome high above the other dwellings, while within the enclosure the lines of 
huts were joined together, or partitioned off into courts with walls of grass. 

Here our ex-President and party were cordially received and heartily 
welcomed by the thirteen-year-old King of Uganda, Daudi Chwa, or Daniel 
Chwa. At each gate they passed officers on duty who opened and shut it for 
them, jingling the big bells which were hung upon them. The first court 
passed, they were greeted by courtiers dressed in gorgeous uniforms. The 
king, through his prime minister, Sir Apolo Vagwar, expressed his pleasure 
of having the honor of receiving the Americans and wished the expedition 
success during their stay in Uganda. 

Like old Rome, Kampala is a city of seven hills. Each division or sub- 
urb is on a separate hill. When street cars in the future invade this secluded 
abode of seventy thousand picturesque Bagondas, it will have to be elevated 
roads, for the hillsides are so steep that they cannot be ascended on horse- 
back, and between them are marshy ravines with little turbulent streams rush- 
ing down to the big lake. 

The ex-President found this wonderful city in the wilderness traversed 
by innumerable broad roads or streets, on each side of which were reed fences, 
and back of these rich and luxuriant banana groves, which almost hid the 
native huts from the stranger's view. The whole city looked like an im- 
mense garden, and nothing but the government buildings, the king's palace 
and the mansions of his ministers and officers of state, the spires of the Ro- 
man Catholic Cathedral and other Christian churches could be seen towering 
above the broad sea of leaves. 

Colonel Roosevelt found the native savage inhabitants of the capital of 
the Uganda Protectorate highly intelligent, quick and keen of perception, 
clever and polite and full of admiration for the white man, whose civilization 
they looked upon as something extraordinary. They were anxious to en- 
tertain their American guest to the best of their ability. 

Uganda was first discovered by the African explorer, Captain Speke, in 
1869, and visited by Stanley in 1875. His glowing description of this re- 
markable black kingdom and its powerful and intelligent king, the famous 
Mutesa, aroused a great interest in England and the first Protestant mis- 
sionaries were sent out there in 1877. Their work has been so successful 
that now 300,000 of the natives have been converted to Christianity. 

Colonel Roosevelt visited the late King Mutesa's grave near Kampala. 
It was an immense mound or earthen pyramid watched by two old women, 



404 CLOSING INCIDENTS. 

who jealously guarded the sacred abode of the once so mighty ruler from 
the curiosity of visiting strangers. 

When Roosevelt left America to spend the winter in the African tropics, 
grave apprehensions were entertained by many of his friends that he never 
might return home alive. > Our brave hero laughed at their anxious fears. 
But when he left civilization behind and entered the unbroken wildernesses 
of Uganda he found himself in the midst of new and extraordinary difficul- 
ties that well might have deterred a less courageous and strenuous traveler 
from progressing farther into the very heart of wildest Africa. 

The expedition that left Kampala last Christmas consisted of Colonel 
Roosevelt, Kermit, Mearns, Heller, Loring and Cunninghame. They had 
thirty porters and boys to carry their 200 loads of supplies. Their destina- 
tion was Rhino Camp in Belgian Congo, which is a permanent basis for 
hunters, and where the ex-President expected to find the white rhinoceros, the 
killing of which was one of the chief objects of his African hunting trip. 
This beast is very rare and many African sportsmen have failed in securing 
specimens of the same. If the game sought for was not found within a week 
in the territory formerly remarkable for its presence, the quest was to be 
abandoned. 

Their road went, through one of the most beautiful countries on earth. 
Uganda has been called the garden spot of the tropics. The tropical vegeta- 
tion that meets the eye on every side excells in luxuriance and brilliancy 
every thing seen elsewhere on earth. The charming attractiveness of the 
scenery, the glowing floral beauty of the landscape, the millions of crimson 
purple, yellow and violet blossoms that cover the fields, the beautiful many 
colored plants and trees that grow in profusion around the green lawns — 
everything seems to breathe beauty and exhale paradisiacal flavors. 

At short intervals they came upon little thriving villages imbedded in 
luxuriant groves of bananas, orange and lemon trees, the banana being the 
most important productive food plant of this country, while coffee, tea, 
cocoa and vanilla plantations formed pleasant interruptions in the eternal 
monotony of the endless cotton fields or cinnamon forests and double avenues 
of young rubber trees extended on both sides along the roads. Add to this 
royal luxuriance of the tropical vegetation the fact that Uganda, being on an 
altitude of 4,000 feet above the level of the sea, enjoys a lovely, almost tem- 
perate climate and that soft, cool breezes day and night sweep over the fields, 



CLOSING INCIDENTS. 405 

and you will have come as near the ideal of an earthly paradise as seems 
possible on this side the grave. 

But a terrible and baneful fate hangs like a Damocles sword over the 
sunny field of this benign region. We have already mentioned the frightful 
epidemic plague which during the last seven years has been Uganda's curse 
and swept away over 300,000 of its natives and killed off almost all cattle 
and domestic animals they possessed. Mr. Roosevelt everywhere came upon 
traces of the fearful ravages of this horrible destroyer. The beautiful vil- 
lages were abandoned, the natives having either succumbed to the deadly 
disease or fled to the woods. The regions along the rivers and the lakes, 
where the fatal tsetse fly lives, were devastated, and it was impossible 
to buy provisions. Millions of poisonous insects swarmed around them and 
covered their faces and hands, so that they often had to march by torches at 
night to protect themselves against these unwelcome intruders. One of the 
most troublesome of these pests was a species of tick which aimed right at 
the eyes and whose bite often caused a severe eye disease sometimes resulting 
in blindness. Another not less disagreeable disturber of their peace was the 
termite or red ant, millions of which crawled along their path and when 
stepped upon or otherwise irritated would attack them by the thousands and 
bury their stings in their tender flesh. 

Now and then they passed some of the isolation camps for the sufferers 
of the terrible sleeping sickness which the British government had estab- 
lished. It was pitiable to see the poor children, men and women who were 
found there in all stages of the disease, some immediately after the inocula- 
tion of the poisonous germ and others battling for life in the last throes of 
death. 

A redeeming feature of this sombre picture of death and desolation was 
the kind and courteous behaviour of the Bagandas. The natives the Ameri- 
can expedition met were generous and extremely polite. Whenever they 
went to visit them in their huts they always gave them a present, which var- 
ied according to the wealth of the tribe. Sometimes it was a cow, but often 
it would be only a big woven basket with a few eggs in the bottom, but the 
owner invariably presented it with great politeness and ceremony, and asked 
them to take it with them. 

The Baganda boys would sometimes accompany them on the march and 
it was considered polite to preceed them on the journey for several hours — 



406 CLOSING INCIDENTS. 

yea, they were so courteous as to part the grass as they walked and cautioned 
them against stepping into holes. 

But, notwithstanding the beauty and richness of the vegetation the Col- 
onel and his companions found the road from Kampala to Lake Albert tire- 
some and monotonous. Not that the voyage offered only one kind of scenery. 
On the contrary, there were the most remarkable varieties and contrasts, but 
a particular class of landscape was distributed, so to speak in large chunks. 
What they saw one day they saw for the whole next week. The enormous 
masses of commonplace vegetation seemed to have grown over and smoth- 
ered the human race. In this dense poll of vegetation, exciting no emotions, 
offering no prospects of anything new, man is of but little more significance 
than the gorilla and the chimpanzee — his houses or huts produced no more 
scenic effects than large bird's nests. He cannot lift himself above the scrub 
and tall grass. If he cuts it down, it simply grows up and surrounds him 
again holding his spirit in bondage and depriving him of that energy which 
has lifted other races up. 

Even in animal life, the American expedition found these forests and 
glades strangely deficient. Beasts there were; but in contrast to the eastern 
plains where they were too conspicuous, they were rarely to be seen. In the 
whole journey from Kampala to Lake Albert the only wild mammals which 
they saw were a party, of baboons in Unyoro. They were crossing the road 
which was cut through the usual tall grass, a little way in front of them, 
and stopped for a moment, and turned with interest to see what the strange 
creatures were. Almost the only other four-limbed creature they saw was a 
chameleon. 

One form of animal life, however, was very abundant in these regions-?— 
butterflies. They were found in a somewhat unusual place, namely, the pud- 
dles on the road. Indescribable quantities of these insects had settled on the 
road in many places, forming bright spots of white and yellow, and were so 
engrossed in their uncleanly banquet, debauching themselves with low ca- 
rouses in dirty water, particularly if there was a little filth or carrion in it, 
that they let the caravan drive over them without stirring 

From Uganda they passed into the kingdom of Unyoro. While the road 
somewhat deteriorated as they passed farther west, the scenery of the two 
countries was very much the same, being composed of hills with low-lying, 
marshy country between them. The road scaled the height and wallowed in 
the marshes with the most inflexible determination, and no reason or obsta- 



CLOSING INCIDENTS. 407 

cle could induce it to deviate from its straight direction. The ups and downs 
were terribly steep, and in some places white ants had erected solid fortresses 
in the center of the highway. 

After passing Haima, the pretty capitol of Unyoro, the ups and downs of 
the road increased in severity as they approached Lake Albert, and terminated 
in a final precipitous descent. 

At Butiaba, where the American expedition approached the lake, arriv- 
ing there January 7, it is surrounded by a low level „plain, two or three miles 
wide, from which rise cliffs about 1,500 feet high. The soil was impreg- 
nated with salt, and supported but little vegetation. 

Butiaba is by no means a town, for it consists of only three or four sheds 
and a pier, and has no inhabitants of any kind. The hunting party found 
a steam launch, which had in tow two steel boats for their equipment, waiting 
for them at the pier, to take them across the northern end of Lake Albert 
and up the Bar-el-Jebel river. They left Butiaba at 10 o'clock in the 
morning and arrived at Koba at 1 1 150 P. M. Forty minutes later the jour- 
ney was continued to Wadelai and thence to Rhino camp, which was reached 
at daybreak. It is located on the Congo side of the Bar-el-Jebel river. 
The distance from Butiaba to Wadelai is 72 miles and was covered in a re- 
markably short time. 

All the way they passed through schools of hippopotami who rose to 
the surface round the launch, which they treated with supreme indifference. 
'Everywhere there was a display of water-birds as remarkable in its way as 
the antelope and zebras on the Athi or Kapiti plains. Some ran about on the 
flat leaves of the water-lily, while some chattered in the trees along the river, 
where they had constructed whole cities of bottle-shaped nests, and many stood 
on one leg contemplating the scene with that grave calmness, which is so char- 
acteristic of the family of cranes and storks. The Bar-el Jebel or Upper 
Nile, along which our hunters were now passing, has no banks, and it is very 
hard to say where the water ends and the land begins, for a carpet of vegeta- 
tion and flowers spreads from the land over the edge of the river, while the 
river overflows the land and creates a shallow marsh a few inches deep. All 
this renders landing very uncomfortable, but the effect on the eye is pleas- 
ant. The water is softly opalescent, particularly in evening lights, and the 
double line of mountains affords a good frame for the landscape, while the 
velvety carpet of vegetation, which borders the sides and backwaters, is re- 
deemed from monotony by beautiful white and blue lilies, and occasional 



408 CLOSING INCIDENTS. 

flowers of more gorgeous hues. Towards evening the mosquitos came forth 
in great clouds, and were so numerous and venomous that in many places 
the whole native population was seen marching down to the lagoons, where 
they remained for some time with only their heads above water to protect 
themselves against their numerous tormentors. 

At Rhino camp in Belgian Congo, Colonel Roosevelt succeeded in find- 
ing and killing some fine specimens of the now almost extinct white rhinoc- 
eros. He shot three good bulls and two cows beside a bull buffalo and other 
smaller game. The naturalists collected many species of birds and mammals 
and Kermit took excellent photographs of a living white rhinoceros. 

This enormous beast which was once so numerous in South Africa and 
south of the Zambesi river is now almost extinct. It is the largest of the 
genus. The species obtained by our mighty hunter measured from twelve 
to fourteen feet in length and from six to six and a half feet in height at the 
shoulders. Their color was slate gray with brownish tints on the shoulder 
and haunches. The head is long and slender and square at the muzzle, as 
seen on our excellent picture of this rare animal. The snout has two horns r 
the front one long and sharp, the second short and obtuse. The length of the 
horns is from three feet to four feet, six inches, and it is the ambition of 
every native chief to have a staff made from them. The horns of the females 
are longer and moire slender than those of the males. The ears are sharp and 
pointed, the lower part closed like a tube, the top adorned with a small tuft 
of hair. The colonel found the flesh of the white rhinoceros more fat and 
juicy than that of the black, and tasting some like beef, but with a pecul- 
iar flavor. The flesh of the calf is said to be especially good, much like ten- 
der veal. 

Our ex-President, now having satisfied his ambition of killing the white 
rhinoceros decided to give specimens of the complete family to the Smith- 
sonian institution. He also donated two skins to the American museum of 
Natural History at New York and presented a head to William T. Horna- 
day's collection. He declared that he would not retain any of the white 
rhino trophies for himself. 

While staying at Rhino camp the American hunting party had an in- 
teresting experience that had not been counted upon. On their second day at 
the camp a grass fire accidentally started and threatened to burn up the whole 
outfit, which was saved only by the energetic work of all hands in clearing 



410 CLOSING INCIDENTS. 

the grass immediately surrounding the camp. All members of the party 
were in excellent health and delighted with their visit in the Congo. 

From Rhino camp the party returned to Wadelai from whence a three 
day's journey by boat on the Upper Nile brought them to Nimule, where 
they arrived February 9 on scheduled time. There the Colonel received his 
mail, of which quite a pile had accumulated during his three weeks' absence 
in the wilderness. He was the recipient of a great number of requests to 
speak in European cities but declined to arrange for addresses other than 
those already promised. 

At Nimule begin the rapids of the Nile, which impede navigation until 
Gondokoro, so that this part of the journey has to be done on foot. These 
rapids are a most impressive spectacle. For a short space the whole volume 
of the Nile is forced through a channel cut in the rock, only fifteen to twenty 
yards wide, and of unknown depth, and then leaps out into a boiling caldron 
of foam, surrounded by black polished cliffs and dense, dark vegetation. 
Other, but less remarkable rapids succeed, and the river is not free for navi- 
gation until a few miles of Gondokoro, where the swampy vegetation begins. 

The road from Nimule to Gondokoro offered the most trying experi- 
ences of their African journey to the ex-President and the American ex- 
pedition. For ten days they were isolated in a wilderness so forbidding to 
the white man that it has not been invaded by the telegraph companies, the 
only communication among its scattered villages being by means of native 
runners. The dangers of the marsh can only be understood by those familiar 
with the route. Sometimes they had to scramble over rocks and sometimes 
wade through marshes or over-flows ; often they had to march through grass 
six or seven feet high, drenched with a cold clammy moisture, which settles 
on the long stalks and defies the sUn for several hours. They also had to 
cross three deep and swift rivers, some wading, others being carried by na- 
tive porters, and others ferried over on rafts, bridges being practically un- 
known in this part of Africa. Sometimes they were relieved by large, spread- 
ing trees, which offered a grateful shade, and when, as sometimes happened, 
these were scattered over an open, grassy meadow, the view was restful and 
attractive. 

The Colonel and Kermit left the expedition's trail for a day's hunting 
of elephant and giant elands at Raj of, on the Congo side of the Bar-el-Jebel 
river. The hunters invaded the territory on the special and eagerly accepted 
invitation of the Belgian authorities. Save for this departure from the 



CLOSING INCIDENTS. 411 

program of travel the expedition would have arrived at Gondokoro a day 
earlier. 

Colonel Roosevelt and Kermit were accompanied in the Congo< by E.. B. 
Haddon, the British district commissioner stationed at Uganda. Mr. Haddon 
met the expedition at Kiriba camp, sixteen miles to the south of Gondokoro. 

February 17, Colonel Roosevelt, Kermit and the other members of the 
Smithsonian African scientific expedition arrived at Gondokon> in Sudan. 
All were well and enthusiastic over their experience and the scientific results 
of their explorations. The appearance of the party was a surprise however, 
for all, including Kermit, wore beards, which had been allowed to grow while 
in the jungles of Uganda. 

The entrance of the Americans in the Sudanese city was picturesque 
and nothing that British and native hospitaliy could suggest was lacking in 
the welcome. The arrival of the expedition in the outskirts of the town was 
heralded with bugle blasts by Chief Keriba's band, which was in the van. 
Keriba accompanied his musicians. As soon as the nine runners in the van 
of the expedition had arrived the native party had marched out to meet the 
hunters sixteen miles to the south and on the way to the town did them all the. 
honor that could be got out of their instruments of brass and Indian drums. 

Reaching the town the band struck up "America," which, being also the 
British national air, suited the occasion. Belgian marches were interspersed. 
Following the musicians a native porter carried a large American flag ; then 
came the caravan proper — Colonel Roosevelt, Kermit, the other American 
hunters and scientists and the body of native porters, who have had an impor- 
tant part in the work of exploration. 

Waiting on the Bar-el-Jebel was the launch of Gen. Sir Reginald Win- 
gate, sirdar of the Egyptian army, and from the vessel were flying the stars 
and stripes. Mr. Roosevelt boarded the launch at once and after a brief rest 
began the reading of his mail. Many communications awaited him. 

A commodious brick house was placed at his disposal. The day after 
their arrival at Gondokoro, Colonel Roosevelt, Kermit and Edmund Heller 
left on a steamer for a final week of shooting along the river bank. Mean- 
while R. J. Cunninghame, the field naturalist, Maj. Edgar A. Mearns and J. 
Alden Loring remained in Gondokoro to pack the specimens, dismiss the 
porters and others who had accompanied the Americans as helpers and wind 
up the affairs of the expedition. 

Kermit Roosevelt and Mr. Loring won fame and popularity among the 



412 CLOSING INCIDENTS. 

inhabitants of Gondokoro by their brave actions and presence of mind in an 
attempt of preventing a threatening accident. A native had fallen into the 
river near the steamer occupied by Col. Roosevelt and was drowned. Kermit 
and Mr. Loring heard of the accident and in an effort to recover the body 
both dived into the water heedless of the dangers from the numerous croco- 
diles, whose scaly bodies were glistening in the tropical sunshine along "the 
river banks, and the swift current that threatened to sweep away everything 
that came wihin its reach. They escaped harm, however, and emerged from 
the watery deep under the applause of hundreds of enthusiastic spectators. 

The governor of Mongolia, Belgian commandant at Lado, and other 
officials called on Colonel Roosevelt in the forenoon. 

While the Colonel and Kermit were absent on the shooting expedi- 
tion along the banks of Bar-el-Jebel the existence of the Roosevelt party 
terminated at noon February 26, when, at the sound of the bugle the tents 
were struck. Then the 450 porters, herdmen and gun bearers, loaded down 
with bags of flour and their own personal belongings, started down the trail 
for Kampala. 

They were more than happy and all sang the praises of Colonel Roose- 
velt, not only for his prowess as a hunter, but also for his generosity to them. 
They were filled with delight at the rewards given them which enabled them 
to return to their homes at their leisure with plenty of collateral with which to 
purchase some more wives. When a member of the American expedition in- 
quired of them if they did not think it was wrong to have so many wives they 
laughed and one of them said, "Why no; is it wrong to be rich?" To be 
wealthy enough to support more than one wife means that he was particu- 
larly blessed. To be able to afford six or eight wives was a great blessing. 

The picture was not complete owing to the absence of Colonel Roose- 
velt and Kermit. The other members of the expedition were on hand, how- 
ever, and waved farewells to the natives as they left. 

For the past two days the camp had been a busy place. The great num- 
ber of traders who flocked thither from the Congo, expecting to get hold of 
a lot of valuable goods for absurdly small sums, were disappointed. One 
trader bitterly denounced Colonel Roosevelt as 'Too much of a business 
man." 

At the roll call the night before the safari was dismissed which has been 
a part of the system of military regulation insisted upon by Colonel Roose- 



CLOSING INCIDENTS. 413 

velt, twenty-five of the natives marched up and solemnly answered to their 
names. 

The sick report returned by the Uganda herdmen showed remarkably 
little illness and only a few deaths. This was largely owing to the unre- 
mitting care and vigilance of Mr. Cunninghame. 

As the last man with a sack of flour was disappearing over the range 
and the breeze brought back the faint echo of the African marching song, 
and the little group of white men gave a cheer, Dr. Mearns swallowing a 
lump in his throat, Colonel Roosevelt and Kermit returned unexpectedly 
from their hunting expedition on the Belgian gunboat, Boch, all looking well. 
They were sorry not to have been present at the farewell. 

Both were enthusiastic and Colonel Roosevelt said that he was greatly 
pleased at the success of his hunting expedition to Raj of, as they secured 
the only complete specimens of the giant eland ever taken out of the Congo 
by white men. The animals were magnificent — as large as Rhinos, with 
huge, graceful spreading horns, and are truly the finest trophies to be se- 
cured in Africa. The colonel killed one bull giant eland while Kermit killed 
a bull and a cow. They had spent from twelve to' fourteen hours daily in the 
chase. 

Kermit superintended the work of preserving the skins of the elands, 
which will be one of the most valuable and beautiful contributions to the 
museum of the Smithsonian Institution. 

The Stars and Stripes which was carried by the expedition was the 
first seen in the Congo since the days of Stanley. Many of the natives, 
which the Colonel met, recalled him as king, and asked whether the members 
of the party were relatives of the great explorer. 

The Colonel said that he would hunt no further unless Lake Wo, on the 
lower reaches of the Nile,- offered an easy opportunity to get some speci- 
mens of rare animals which they had failed to get so far. The great 
Smithsonian scientific expedition that was practically ended, and the ex- 
President and Kermit were ready to start on their voyage down the Nile. 

The results from the standpoint of the hunter and the scientist have 
exceeded all expectations. Colonel Roosevelt and his son Kermit have killed 
500 specimens of large mammals. The bag includes the following : Seven- 
teen lions, eleven elephants, ten buffaloes, ten black rhinoceroses, nine white 
rhinoceroses, nine hippopotami, nine giraffes, three leopards, seven Chee- 
tahs, three giant elands, three sables, one sita-tungo., two bongos. All these 



414 CLOSING INCIDENTS. 

were killed in the interest of science and the specimens were distributed ac- 
cordingly, the majority going to the Smithsonian Institution. Mr. Roosevelt 
retained not more than six trophies for himself. 

The naturalists who followed the expedition obtained a remarkable se- 
lection, including over 5, coo birds and mammals. The results in this line 
were very gratifying, and science was enriched with several new species and 
a large number of the smaller mammals of Africa. The game taken and the 
collections made constitute a world's record for such a period of hunting and 
scientific reseanm in Africa, and the American museums have received the 
greatest collection of African fauna in existence. Too much praise cannot 
be accorded to R. J. Cunninghame, the Englishman whose management of the 
expedition was declared as nearly perfect as could be conceived. 

Colonel Roosevelt devoted his time during his voyage down the Nile to 
writing, including the preparation of addresses he later on delivered in Eu- 
rope. 

The neighborhood of the Nile, north of Gondokora, and especially be- 
tween Bor and Lake Wo, through which the Colonel passed on his way to 
Khartum — a voyage which it took two weeks to accomplish — is one of the 
strangest and most desolate countries in the world. The Bar-El-Jebel here 
ceases to have banks at all, and spreads itself over large marshes, whose 
extent is unknown, but amounts to many miles on each side. As far as can 
be seen from the river, the country consists of a wooded plain, from which 
occasional hills arise. The course of the river is represented by a narraw 
and extremely tortuous channel, which sometimes widens out into lagoons, 
but is generally confined between two walls of dark-green papyrus. Like the 
locust or the potato-bug in the animal kingdom, the papyrus is an appalling ex- 
ample of the power of mere numbers. Weak though the reed is in istelf, the 
strength of the host is irresistible ; it invades, conquers, monopolizes, and, un- 
like the locust, it does not go away. You may cut down a few million stalks 
— millions and millions more remain, like the spears of a countless army, and 
as soon as you have cut down, re-growth commences. It is for the water 
what weed is for the land. Though each separate plumy shaft is a beauti- 
ful object, the mass of vegetation, when seen extending for hundreds of miles, 
has no grace of form or color, but is merely a dull stretch of green, unrespon- 
sive to effects of light and shade. It seems uncongenial to animal life, at 
least to the more cheerful forms. Crocodiles and fishes abound, likewise 



CLOSING INCIDENTS. 415 

mosquitoes in clouds ; but birds are scarce, and even the hippopotamus, though 
not unknown, appears not to much like these dreary surroundings. 

The last day of February, Theodore Roosevelt and the others of his 
immediate party sailed on the steamer Dal" for Khartum. For about four 
hundred miles the steamer wandered in the above described maze of papyrus, 
sometimes actually going south, in order to follow the bends and twists of the 
stream, but never meeting any salvent feature to break the monotony. They 
were pushing through the region of the famous "sudd", the Arabic name 
(barrier) given to the masses of vegetable growth which obstruct the river. 
This "sudd" is caused by the papyrus and other seeds, the roots of which 
plants grow together, and unite with the soil to form a compact mass. When, 
as is frequently the case, violent storms sweep over the swamps, the vegeta- 
tion shows a mixture of strength and weakness. Large masses are torn off, 
but they carry their roots with them, and the roots carry earth and mud. 
Sooner or later these islets collide, and become piled on the top of one another, 
leaving the water to force its way as best it can below them. The river 
thus becomes covered with a layer of earth and vegetable matter, ten or even 
fifteen feet thick. Sometimes this monstrous growth entirely obstructs navi- 
gation between Gondokoro and Khartum, and communication can be restored 
only by cutting through it. 

The part of the Nile on which the colonel was now voyaging is known 
as Bar-El-Jebel, or the mountain river, a name which suits well enough the 
beautiful reaches south of Nimule, but it is not appropriate to the swamp just 
described. At the end of that swamp is a lake called Wo, so overgrown with 
weeds that it is hard to say how large it may be. Here the Bar-El-Jebel meets 
the Bar-El-Gazal coming from the west, and the united stream, known as 
Bar-El-Abyad or White Nile, turns sharply to the East, until, after receiving 
the Sobot, it resumes its northerly direction. 

The party arrived at Mongalla, March 2, and immediately after landing 
the Colonel performed the ceremony of planting a tree to commemorate his 
visit. 

The previous two days Colonel Roosevelt encountered a fore-taste of the 
strenuous hospitality which characterized his progress through the Soudan 
and Europe. 

Leaving Gondokoro in the morning, he arrived at noon at Lady, an at- 
tractive station On the Eucalave section of the Congo Free State, which 
shortly reverts to England. 



416 CLOSING INCIDENTS. 

At the landing stage the strapping Congolese soldiery, under Command- 
ant Rekke, formed a guard of honor and escorted Colonel Roosevelt from the 
steamer, while hundreds of the inhabitants of the nearby villages following 
in procession, anxious to see the Khaki-shirted "King of Americani." 

Colonel Roosevelt was entertained at luncheon by the commandant, the 
company numbering ten in all. 

The Colonel was in his happiest mood, speaking French exclusively and 
keeping the company laughing with his humorous tales of hunting in Ameri- 
ca and Africa. 

He had only a few hours respite before reaching Mongalla, where the re- 
ception was much more elaborate, as Colonel Owen, Governor of the Prov- 
ince, had been for years an admirer of Colonel Roosevelt's words and deeds. 

A huge American flag flew from a special flagstaff. It fluttered between 
the red-crossed emblem of the Soudan and the Union Jack of Great Britain. 

After dinner at the Governor's residence, the guest of honor witnessed 
a native dance arranged for his entertainment. A thousand or more native 
warriors in wonderful ostrich head-dresses and with their bodies decorated 
here and uncovered there, after the African native mode. 

The natives exhausted their repertoire of dances for the visitor and it 
was the finest display Colonel Roosevelt had seen in Africa. The party left 
the same day for Lake Wo. 

Colonel Roosevelt's proverbial luck in safely escaping the dangers of the 
African climate was pathetically illustrated during his stay in Mongalla in 
the death of Dr. Prosch, the French missionary who was for two years sta- 
tioned in Rhodesia, and who was trekking home to retire and end his days 
in peace. Dr. Prosch and others were the guests of Colonel Roosevelt at 
luncheon. The doctor seemed in excellent spirits and had a lengthy talk 
with the ex-President about missionary work, proving himself a -man of liberal 
ideas. Dr. Prosch and Colonel Roosevelt expected to meet again in Paris. 

Later Dr. Prosch collapsed and died within a few minutes. At sunset 
he was buried on the very spot where he died, bugles sounding taps over the 
newly-made grave. 

Within a stone's throw of Colonel Roosevelt's headquarters lay English 
and Italian sportsmen seriously ill and the district commissioner was down 
with fever. All were inured to the rigors of the African climate, where they 
had been for years, yet Colonel Roosevelt escaped practically without a single 
ill. In fact, he emerged from the jungles of Africa healthier than he went in. 










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